Deceptive Appearances
by JasonMorganfan87
Summary: A few months after the Cullens leave in New Moon, Bella starts to exhibit vampiric characteristics.  The problem is she was never bitten.  What is causing Bella to change so spontaneously?  Will one of the Cullens have the key to finding the answer?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or any of its characters.**

**Deceptive Appearances **

I made my way into the cafeteria at school at lunchtime. Subconsciously looked over at the table where the Cullen kids usually sat. They weren't there of course. They would never be there again.

It has been months since the Cullens left. Since Edward broke my heart and left me, taking the people I'd quickly started to love as family with him. Nothing had been the same since that day. I had constant nightmares and I was always looking for any way that I could possibly subconsciously see Edward. I'd even gone so far as to place my life in danger just to get visions of him begging me not to.

The only relief I felt was when I was with Jake, but even that had ended. Jake had recently pushed me away, saying it was for my own good.

I was pulled from my musings by Mike, Jessica, and Lauren coming over. "Hey, Bella," Mike said.

I began to feel really weird as they sat down. Not the normal weird that I usually felt either. I usually felt off with them because I couldn't talk to them or be great friends with them the way I could with the Cullens. We just didn't have anything in common.

This was different though. Right now it was almost like they smelled different. Like they smelled like food. It was the same when I saw others too. I tried to ignore it though. I was probably just really hungry.

"Bella, are you okay?" Mike asked.

I shrugged. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"Um, maybe because you've been in trance for the last five minute," Jessica said.

"Your eyes are kinda bloodshot too," Mike said.

"What?" I asked confused.

"Your eyes. It's like they're turning red," he said again.

"No, they're not," I denied. My eyes couldn't be red. That was impossible. The only creatures with red eyes were... "Does one of you have a mirror?"

"Yeah," Lauren said. She dug into her purse and pulled out a portable mirror and handed it over.

I took it and immediately inspected my eyes. It was hard to tell, but Mike was right. My eyes had a reddish tint to them. But why? What would cause my eyes to turn to that of a vampire's? And why was I beginning to crave human blood.

"Bella, what's wrong?" Jessica asked.

I didn't answer. I just grabbed my things and bolted from the room.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Twenty minutes later, I arrived at the Cullen house. I couldn't go back to my house, not with Charlie there. I needed to be someplace alone to figure out what the hell was happening to me.

"Okay, Bella, calm down. You are not turning into a vampire. That's impossible. You weren't bitten," I told myself as walked to the living room. I tried to believe what I was saying, but it was hard. If I wasn't turning, why were my eyes turning red and why was I beginning to crave human blood?

I looked down at my skin. It wasn't pale like the Cullens' were. It was the same shade as always and it wasn't cold. Also, I didn't sparkle when I was in the sunlight just a few minutes earlier and I didn't get turned off by human food. So I couldn't be a vampire. But what else could all this mean? I knew only one person around who could remotely answer my questions.

I picked up my phone and dialed a familiar number. I held the phone to my ear and paced the room as I anxiously waited for an answer.

_"Hello?"_

"Mr. Black, it's Bella. I need to talk to Jake," I said. I knew from experience that Billy Black would probably put up a fight on Jake's behalf, but I would have to convince him to let me talk to him.

_"Bella, I'm sorry, but Jacob's busy."_

"Which is your way of saying that he's avoiding me still. Look, I don't have time for this! I need to talk to Jake now! It's an emergency," I said, a bit rudely. Most of the time I made sure to be polite with people, but there was no time for that now. I needed help in finding out what was going on.

Soon there was some noise in the background. Then I heard Jake's voice. _"Bella, what's wrong."_

"Jake, thank God. Look, I really need to see you. I need your help," I told him, desperation showing in my voice.

_"Where are you?"_ Jake asked.

"I'm at the Cullen house. Can you come over?" I asked.

_"Bella, I can't go onto Cullen land. It's part of a treaty that was put into place before I was born," _Jake explained.

"Well, the Cullens aren't here!" I snapped. "Look, I'm sorry, but I really need to see you and it needs to be someplace private. I don't want to have this conversation in front of the others at the reservation."

There was a pause before Jake began speaking again. _"Okay. I'll be there soon."_

"Thank you," I said before hanging up the phone. After that, I sat down on the couch and waited.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

I was waiting for about ten to fifteen minutes before I heard the door open and close.

"Bella?"

"In here!" I called to him. When he got close, I caught a horrible stench from him. "Oh God. Jake, you smell terrible."

"Gee, thanks," Jake said as he walked towards me. "So what's this...?"

I that Jake had trailed off and started to look angry when he noticed my eyes. "Jake, listen-"

"Bastard! He bit you, didn't he? He came back and he bit you! I'll kill him!" Jake screamed.

"Jake, no. Edward hasn't been back since he left," I told him sadly. I wished Edward had come back. I'd give anything to see him again.

"Well, then who. Who did this to you?"

"I don't know. I don't even know what's been done to me," I said. It was true. Try as I might, I couldn't figure out what was going on with me. Parts of me seemed human while other parts of me screamed vampire.

"Don't play dumb with me, Bella. You're one of them. A blood sucking monster!" Jake snarled.

I glared at him. I wouldn't listen to anyone call the Cullens monsters. It was bad enough when Edward said it about himself. "First of all, they are not monsters. Just because they're different that doesn't make them monsters. And second of all, I'm not like them. At least not all like them. Look at me. Does my skin look pale to you? Fee it. Does it feel cold?

Jake looked at me for a minute before reaching out to touch my outstretched arm. He calmed down some, but not totally. "I don't get it. Your eyes are red, like theirs are. Your skin is hard too."

"I don't know, Jake. I don't know what's happening. I woke up this morning and things were just different. At first I didn't think anything of it when human's started appealing to me like food. I thought I was just hungry. I don't know. Maybe I just didn't want to see it. Anyway, when Mike, Newton said my eyes were turning red, I was forced to pay attention," I told him.

"Were you bit?" Jake asked.

"No. That's the thing. No one bit me. I just woke up this morning and I was like this," I told him.

"That's impossible."

"I know! I know it shouldn't be happening. People don't just wake up one day and start turning into vampires. But I don't know how else to explain it. God, Jake, I'm freaking out here," I said as began pacing. This whole thing was really scaring me. Alice had once told me that I would be a vampire one day, but I never thought it would be this way. And I certainly didn't think I'd be alone when it happened.

"Okay, Bella, calm down," Jake said. He then grabbed me by the shoulders and sat me down on the couch before sitting down next to me. "Okay, tell me everything that's been happening lately."

"Nothing. Nothing's been happening. I get up in the morning, go to school, and then come home. I repeat the process the next day," I told him. I wish I could pinpoint some kind of difference. Then at least this whole thing would make sense.

"Bella, I know everything there is to know about vampires. It has been burned into my brain. The only way to become a vampire is to be infected by their blood," Jake said.

"So you have no idea what's going on," I said, the disappointment in my voice was clear.

Jake shook his head. "I'm sorry, Bella."

I was quiet for a while as I contemplated my options. I really only had one. "Then there's only one thing I can do. I have to go find the Cullens."


	2. Chapter 2

**Bella's POV**

An hour later, I was in my room packing my things. Jake was with me. It was clear to me that he wasn't happy with my decision to go find the Cullens.

"Bella, think about this," Jake said. His unhappiness was evident in his voice.

"What's to think about? Something is happening to me and I have no idea what. Neither do you. Now the only person I know that even remotely has a chance of knowing is Carlisle," I told him. Didn't he realize how hard this was for me. Something was happening inside me and I had no idea what. I was neither vampire nor human. I didn't know what I was. I knew if anyone knew, it would be Carlisle. He'd been around for over three hundred years and had more knowledge than anyone I'd ever met. If anything like this had happened before, Carlisle would know about it. I had to go find him. He was the only one that could help.

"What makes you think they'll even help you? They left you, Bella," Jake said.

I flinched with hurt. I didn't need to be reminded that the Cullens had left. It hurt me deeply. I knew that it was mostly Edward, but it still bothered me that the others hadn't at least said goodbye to me. "If you have a better idea, I'm all ears."

Jake didn't say anything. I knew he wouldn't. He didn't know what was happening anymore than I did. He just hated the Cullens for what they were and didn't want me near them.

I went back to my packing. I grabbed a bunch of clothes from my dresser and stuffed them into my suitcases. "Look, I know you don't want me to go, but I don't have a choice here."

"There has to be a better option than going to a bunch of blood suckers for help," Jake said with a disgusted look on his face.

I turned and glared at him. "I don't know if you've noticed lately, but I'm one of those blood suckers now."

Jake shook his head at me. "No. You're still human. You're still warm. You still crave human food."

"I also crave human blood," I told him. It was true. I didn't like it, but it was true. All day I'd had the urge to bite someone, even if I was trying to deny it, and I had a feeling it was going to get worse. That was another reason I had to find the Cullens. Maybe they would be able to help me curve my impulses.

Jake sighed. "When will you be back.

I looked at him sadly. The truth was, I wouldn't be back. Even if the Cullens didn't want her around, she wouldn't be able to return to Forks or to her father's house. That would be a recipe for disaster.

"You are coming back, aren't you?" Jake asked nervously.

"No. What would I be coming back to, Jake. Charlie? I could rip his throat out before he even realized what was happening," I said.

"You wouldn't do that," Jake said.

"I would love to believe that, but I can't. I look at humans and I think one thing. A meal. I'm not sure I'd be able to curve my instincts. It would be like putting a cookie in front of a child and expecting him not to eat it. It's impossible. I can't be responsible for Charlie's death. I won't be," I said firmly.

"So you're just gonna go and forget that the rest of us ever existed," Jake asked, sounding hurt.

"I could never forget, Jake. I'm not leaving because I don't care, I'm leaving because I do. I couldn't stand it if I hurt you or Charlie."

"What about Charlie? He's going to look for you," Jake said.

"He won't find me," I said confidently. I knew that no matter how hard Charlie looked, he would never find me. I hated that I had to put him in the position where he would look, but there was no choice.

"But he'll never stop searching for you. You know that," he said.

I did know that. I knew that no matter what, he would keep looking until the day he died. "I know. And I know that that isn't fair, but what else am I supposed to do. Sit and wait for the time when I can't control my impulses. Would that be better?"

Jake shook his head sadly. "No, of course not. I just don't want you to go. And I don't want _them_ to hurt you again."

"They are the only chance I have. They're the only ones who can possibly figure out what's happening to me, Jacob. I'm freaking out here. I have no idea how or why this is happening. I'm turning into a vampire. Do you have any idea how freaky that is?" I asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Bella. I should've realized how hard this is for you."

"Yeah, you should've. I am trying to get through this the only way I know how. I need the Cullens," I said. It wasn't just for answers either. I needed their wisdom and comfort. I needed my second family.

"How are you even going to find them. They could be anywhere. It's not exactly easy to find a family of vampires," Jake said.

"Not unless you're one of them. I caught their scents at the house. All I have to do is follow it. Or maybe I could go to the hospital and see if there's written documentation as to where Carlisle was transferred to. One way or another, I'll find them." I would find them. I had to find them.

Jake walked towards me and put his arms around me. "I don't want you to go, but I know you have to. If you need me, just pick up the phone, Okay?"

I smiled and pulled away from him. "Thanks, Jake. For everything. I don't know what I would've done the last few months if it weren't for you."

"I'll always be here for you, Bella. Always."

I nodded and then grabbed my begs. "Goodbye, Jake," I said before walking out the door.


	3. Chapter 3

**Bella's POV**

It didn't take me as long as I thought it would to find the Cullens. Less than week. I followed there scents pretty quickly to Ithaca, New York. I didn't find them a moment too soon either because my blood lust was getting worse and worse and I was afraid that I would lose control without their control. It was definitely good that I left Forks. I wouldn't have been able to suppress my urges while living with Charlie.

I got out of the truck and nervously approached the Cullens' house. I had no idea how they were going to greet me. They'd left me. For all I knew they didn't want anything to do with me. Edward didn't, so why should they?

Just as I was about to knock on the door, it opened and Alice nearly sent me to the ground trying to hug me. After regaining my composure, I hugged her bag. "It's good to see you too, Alice."

Alice pulled away a second later and looked at me with a huge smile on her face. "Oh, Bella, I've missed you so much. I can't believe you're here. I got a vision of you coming like a second ago and rushed to greet you. What are you doing here? How'd you even find us?"

"Didn't see that much, huh?" I asked.

Alice shook her head. "Just knew that you were coming. I haven't been looking into your future intentionally lately. Edward asked me not to."

I couldn't help but feel a little bitter after that last comment. It was like Edward was God or something. Why was it that when Edward spoke, the rest of them seemed to fall in line? I got that Edward was there family, but even families were allowed to disagree. Unless they really didn't disagree.

"By the way, he's not here. He went to South America," Alice said gently.

I couldn't decide whether I was disappointed or relieved. I guess it was a little bit of both. I missed Edward like crazy and ached to see him, but I knew he didn't want anything to do with me, so seeing him would just hurt more. "Um, that's not why I'm here. Look, can I just come in?"

"Yeah, of course. The others are going to be so happy to see you," Alice said before pulling me in. She didn't seem to notice that anything was different about me, but that could be because I was wearing sunglasses to cover my bloodshot eyes and she was too excited to realize that my scent had most likely changed.

Alice dragged me through the house and into the living room, where Jasper and Esme were. "Hey, guys, look who's here?"

Esme immediately got up and hugged me. "Oh, Bella, it's so good to see you. We've missed you."

I resisted the urge to snort. I was trying not to be too bitter, but I couldn't help it. If they'd missed me so much, why had they left me without even saying goodbye? "You too, Esme."

After breaking away from Esme, I looked over at Jasper who was looking at me with a guilty expression on his face. "Jasper, don't. What happened wasn't your fault. And in any event, it's pretty much immaterial now."

"How can you say that? I could've killed you, Bella," Jasper said.

"Yeah, I'm not sure you could've," I said softly. I wasn't sure if Jasper's attack would've killed me even then if he'd been successful. For all I knew, the changes had already been in affect then.

"She's right, Jazz. You have to stop beating yourself up over this," Alice told her husband.

Jasper stared at me for a minute. It looked like he was piecing things together. "Bella, your blood doesn't appeal to me anymore."

"Jasper's right. I didn't notice because I was so excited to see you, but something is different about you," Alice said.

"Oh, you can say that again," I told her before removing my sunglasses.

There was a collection of gasps from the three other vampires in the room. "Oh my God. Bella you're a vampire," Alice said in shock.

"Who did it?" Jasper asked.

"Your guess is as good as mine," I told them.

"What do you mean, sweetheart. How did this happen?" Esme asked concerned.

"Um, I'd rather not have this conversation more than once. Are the others around?" I asked. It was better if I could just tell everyone all at once. Not that there was really much I could tell them. I had more questions than answers. I was really hoping they could tell me more than I could tell them.

"I'll call, Carlisle," Esme said before quickly leaving the room.

"I'll get Emmett and Rose," Jasper said before heading for the stairs.

"Hey, there's something I don't understand. You were warm when I hugged you. Vampires are ice cold," Alice said.

"Yeah, well, since when do I do anything normally," I joked as I sat down on the couch

Esme came back in a second later. "Okay, Carlisle is on his way. The hospital's not far from here, so he should be here in about ten minutes."

Jasper came down with Emmett and Rosalie at that point. "Well, well, look who showed up," Emmett said with a smile on his face.

I stood up just in time for Emmett to pull me into a big bear hug. I hugged him back with all my strength, which now that I was at least part vampire, was quite a lot.

Emmett groaned a little and then pulled back. "Damn, girl, you got strong. Welcome to the club."

I smiled at him. "Why thank you."

"So it's true then. You were bitten," Rosalie said with a bit of anger in her voice.

"I wanna wait for Carlisle to get here before I go into that. My story is a bit unconventional, even on vampire standards," I said.

"I think it's pretty obvious. You had someone bite you so that Edward would take you back," Rosalie accused.

I growled at her and took a step forward. Maybe it was because I now knew I could hold my own in fight, but I suddenly felt the need to defend myself, where in the past, I'd probably just keep my anger to myself. "You don't know what the hell you're talking about."

Jasper quickly got in the middle of us. "Okay, enough." He then turned to Rosalie. "You should know better than to provoke a newborn."

"A what?" I asked.

"A newborn. It's what a vampire is called when they are first turned. That's what you are right now. Newborns are very strong, but they also don't have great self-control. They're more likely to strike back when hurt or angry at someone," Jasper explained.

I nodded. That certainly explained why I had the urge to rip Rosalie's throat out when she accused me of being so desperate that I'd go out and look for a vampire to turn me. I had wanted to be turned, but I wanted to do it so that Edward wouldn't have to worry about losing me or turning old. I wouldn't do it just to hold onto Edward if Edward didn't want me.

Just then I heard the door open. Carlisle entered the living room a second later and smiled at me. "Bella, it is very good to see you," he said before hugging me briefly.

"Hi, Carlisle," I said as I hugged him back.

Carlisle pulled away after a minute and looked into my eyes. He looked shocked. Obviously Esme hadn't told him on the phone.

"You've been turned," he started, surprised filled his voice.

I simply nodded. Though I wasn't sure turned was the right word given that I was never bitten.

Carlisle led me over to the large couch in the living room and sat me down. He and the other sat around me as well. "When did it happen?"

"Less than a week ago," I answered.

Carlisle sighed and looked down sadly for a minute. "I'm sorry, Bella, this wasn't supposed to happen. The reason Edward wanted us all to leave was so you would be safer. If we had known this would happen, we never would've gone."

"Don't get me wrong, Carlisle, I wish to God you hadn't left, but I don't think it would've made a difference," I told him.

"Sure it would've. We would've kicked ass if we'd been there. Not that it's not awesome that we're all finally on level playing fields, but you shouldn't have had to go through all that pain," Emmett said.

"There was no pain," I told him.

"Bella, you don't have to downplay it for us. We know how painful it is," Alice said.

"No, you don't understand. I'm not downplaying anything. There was literally no pain. None," I said.

"Bella, that's impossible. A vampire's venom is more painful than anything," Carlisle said.

"You think that's impossible. Wait until you get a load of this one. I wasn't bitten," I told them. They all looked at me as if I were crazy. I had a feeling that I wasn't going to get the answers I was looking for as quickly as I was hoping.

"What do you mean you weren't bitten?" Carlisle asked.

"I mean, I went to sleep one night feeling completely human and I woke up with red eyes and craving human blood. There was no vampire bite, no painful transformation. Nothing," I explained.

They all looked at me in disbelief before turning to Carlisle for answers. I couldn't blame them. I was hoping Carlisle would have answers too. His face, however, told me he didn't.

"This is very strange. People don't spontaneously become vampires. The only way to become one is to be bitten by one," Carlisle said.

"Could you have been bitten and not remember," Emmett asked.

"I seriously doubt it. I was bitten once before and I remember every excruciating moment of it," I told him.

"Hey, could that be it? Could it be a delayed effect from when James bit her?" Alice asked Carlisle.

Carlisle shook his head. "No. The venom moves quickly. If Edward had somehow not gotten all of it, it would've gone through her system and turned her long ago."

"Besides, I'm sure I'm even a vampire. Or at least not a full-fledged vampire. Alice, you said it yourself, my skin isn't cold, and I sill crave human food," I told them.

"You do?" Jasper asked surprised.

"Yeah. The pull of human blood is much bigger though," I told him, knowing he of all people would understand.

"Have you tasted human blood, Bella? It's alright if you did. It is very hard to fight the urge," Carlisle told me reassuringly.

"Yeah, it is, but somehow I managed it. It wasn't easy though. I barely managed to refrain from mauling the guy at the gas station," I said. I was ashamed to admit, but I had considered letting go. It would've been so easy. As easy as breathing.

"It's okay, Bella. Don't feel guilty about being tempted. We have all been tempted," Carlisle said.

"Even you?" I asked. I found it hard to believe that Carlisle was tempted. He was around human blood every day and had never once given in.

Carlisle nodded. "I had to stay away from humans for a very long time. Trust me; I know what you're feeling right now. It feels wrong, but it also feels very right.

"So what is your drink of choice, Bella?" Emmett asked, obviously trying to lighten the mood.

"Um, I don't know yet," I answered. I had yet to go for Blood yet. So far I was okay eating human food. I was still craving blood big time, but I had yet to taste it.

"I hope you are not telling us that you haven't gone hunting yet," Carlisle said in a disappointed fatherly voice.

I gave him a sheepish smile. "I was kind of anxious to find you guys."

Carlisle sighed unhappily and pulled me up off the couch with me. "Come. I'm taking you hunting."

"Carlisle, that can wait. I'm okay. I'd really rather figure out how this is all happening," I said.

"There will be plenty of time for that later. Right now, we need to get you fed, and I won't hear another word about not doing so," Carlisle said sternly as I opened my mouth to object.

I sighed and nodded. I knew there was no point in arguing, so I just allowed Carlisle to lead me out of the house and towards the forest.


	4. Chapter 4

**Carlisle's POV**

I walked Bella back towards the house after I was sure she'd hunted enough. "Better now?"

"Yeah, much. I'm sorry, Carlisle, I probably should've done this earlier," Bella admitted.

"There is no probably about it, Bella. You should've hunted the first day," I lectured. Needless to say, I was very unhappy when I learned that Bella hadn't hunted since turning into a vampire. It was extremely reckless and dangerous. While we couldn't exactly be killed from not hunting, it could cause a lot of problems.

"I thought human food would be enough for a while. At least until I got to you guys," Bella said.

"Well, I don't exactly know how well human food sustains you, but you did mention quite a bit of blood lust, which means you still need to hunt regularly," I told her.

"Sorry. And I'm sorry for putting all of this on you guys. I know you probably don't want me here," Bella said.

I stopped dead in my tracks and turned to her. I couldn't believe she would say such a thing. "Why would you say something like that? Of course we want you hear. You are a part of this family. As far as I'm concerned, you are just as much my daughter as Alice and Rosalie."

"So you would've left them too?" Bella asked with bitterness in her voice.

I flinched at her words. I knew they were nothing less than what I deserved, but it still hurt to hear them. It hurt to hear the anger and betrayal in my youngest daughter's voice. I had hurt her. I hadn't meant to, but I had. I had to make it right. "Bella, I'm sorry. I allowed myself to be talked into leaving by my son and I shouldn't have."

"Then why did you?" she asked.

"Because a part of me agreed with him," I told her. I knew that wasn't what she wanted to hear, but a large part of me did agree with some of Edward's logic. He was worried that Bella being around us would put her in danger. His theory seemed to be proven right when Jasper attacked her. I loved Bella like a daughter. I didn't want to see her get hurt. So even though it hurt, I decided to do as Edward requested.

Bella looked at me with a hurt expression on her face. "Y...you agree with Edward? So you really don't want me here."

"Bella, what are you talking about? Of course I want you here." I was thoroughly confused. How did what I'd just said give her the impression that I didn't her with us?

"You said that you shared Edward's opinion. So than you think I'm not good for your family. You don't want me around anymore than he did," Bella said, almost in tears. That was apparently another difference between her and the rest of us. She could cry.

I dumbfounded by what she was saying. "Is that what Edward told you." If it was, he and I would be having a lengthy conversation the next time I saw him. There is no way I would've allowed that if I'd known.

Bella nodded and began freely crying.

I immediately pulled her into my arms and held her until she calmed down some. Then I pulled her away slightly and cupped the sides of her face. "Bella, I'm so sorry. I never would've allowed that to happen if I'd known. I had no idea Edward was going to lie to you like that."

Bella sniffled a little. "Lie?"

"Yes. Edward lied to you. We do not think those things and neither does he. It upsets me that he would for one minute let you believe it. We did not leave because we did not want you. Quite the opposite. We left because we were concerned for you. Edward was afraid because of what happened with Jasper. I wanted to leave so you could a normal life without having to fear the supernatural. That is what I agreed with Edward on. Though, even though I agreed somewhat, I still had severe reservations about going. I should've listened to them," I said. I would never forgive myself for allowing Edward to do this. We'd all caused Bella immense pain by leaving her the way we did.

"S...so Edward didn't stop loving me. He just went behind my back and decided what was best for me," Bella said. Her voice went from hurt to anger.

"Yes. And I'm ashamed to admit that we helped him. I hope you can forgive us for that, and I promise that it will never happen again," I told her.

"Please don't promise that unless you mean it. I couldn't take it if you just disappeared from my life again," Bella said.

It broke my heart to hear the pain in her voice. It was obvious that we had hurt her a great deal. "I do mean it, sweetheart. I promise it will _never_ happen again."

"Not even if Edward asks you to?" Bella asked me.

"Not even then," I promised. I loved my son dearly, but I loved Bella too. I would not allow myself to be forced to choose again.

"I hope you mean, that, Carlisle, because I can't go through that again," she said.

I pulled her into my arms once more and hugged her. "It's alright now. You're home. We'll never leave you again.

Bella pulled away and wiped her tears. "Can we go back now?"

"Of course. Let's go," I told her. I placed my arm around her and we quickly walked back to the house.


	5. Chapter 5

**Bella's POV**

I was sitting in my room thinking about everything that had happened lately. It had been nearly a month since I arrived at the Cullen house in Ithaca. I was quickly seeing it as home. I missed my parents and Jacob a lot, but this was where I belonged. It was where I'd always belonged.

I think that's why I lost it so badly when they'd left. Yes, I loved Edward and I was devastated when he told me he didn't love me, but losing the whole family was what hurt the most. I'd always loved the Cullens and I thought that they loved me. When they left, I'd felt utterly betrayed. It was like it had been Charlie and Renee who had left me.

There was still no sign of Edward. The others had tried to contact him, but he refused to pick up his phone. A part of me was glad about that fact. I was afraid of what I would do to him when I saw him. I still loved Edward and missed him like crazy, but I was also very angry at him. He was responsible for the many months of despair I felt at losing not only him, but the rest of the Cullens as well. It was probably best that he didn't come back until my newborn status changed.

I was pulled from these thoughts as Alice entered my room with about ten shopping bags.

"Hey, Bella. I got you a whole new wardrobe," Alice said excitedly.

"Why am I not surprised?" I muttered to myself.

"I heard that. Just be grateful that Carlisle wouldn't let you go with me," Alice said as she placed the bags on my bed.

Carlisle had insisted that I not go where humans were while I was still a newborn. He didn't even let me go hunting by myself. He was worried about my bloodlust if I came into contact with humans. Honestly, it was a realistic fear. The desire for human blood was very intense at this point. At first it hadn't been that bad, but it got worse every day until it reached its climax. I knew that if I was around humans right now, I would probably not be able to handle it.

"Oh, speaking of Carlisle, I ran into him when I was coming in. He wants to see you in his office," Alice said.

"Great," I said as I got up from the bed and practically sprinted to the door. I was up for anything that kept me from having to play dress up with Alice.

"Wait! You have to try these on," Alice protested.

"Sorry, Alice, but it'll have to wait. I don't wanna keep Carlisle waiting," I said before running out of the room. I walked downstairs and down the hall to Carlisle's office. I knocked on the door.

"Come in," I heard him say.

When I walked in, he was on the phone. He held up his index finger to indicate that he would just be a minute. I sat down on the couch near his desk and waited.

"Edward, this dance we are doing is getting very tedious. You are to call me when you get this message," Carlisle said irritably into the phone before promptly hanging it up.

I flinched at the sound of Edward's name. Just hearing his name sparked hurt and anger inside me.

"I'm sorry, Bella, I didn't think you'd make it up here this quickly. I intended for that call to be over by the time you got here," Carlisle told me apologetically.

"It's okay, Carlisle. You shouldn't need to apologize for wanting to talk to your son," I said.

Carlisle walked over and sat next to me. "I know that the subject of Edward is a touchy one for you."

"I'm fine," I said stiffly.

"As in you don't want to talk about it. That's fine. We don't need to discuss him right now. There are more pressing matters for us to discuss," Carlisle said.

I nodded in agreement. "Yeah, like what the hell is happening to me."

"I'm afraid I haven't made much headway in that. Your situation is rather unique. It has never happened before," Carlisle said.

"Hmm. I'm a freak even among vampires."

"I believe you kids have a saying. Something about normal being overrated?" he asked with smirk on his face.

I laughed loudly. "Thanks, Carlisle."

"We will figure this out, Bella. It's just going to take some time," Carlisle assured me.

An idea suddenly came to me about how we could figure things out. "You know, Edward once told me something. Something about a coven of vampires in Italy. He said they governed our kind."

"The Volturi, and going to them is not a viable option. They would either want to covet you or destroy you. I will allow neither," Carlisle told me.

I shrugged. "It was just an idea."

Carlisle nodded. "And I understand why you came up with it. It does seem like a good idea to people who don't have a lot of knowledge about the Volturi. Thankfully I do. They can be very unpredictable. I will not chance leaving you at their mercy. No, it's best that this be kept from them for as long as possible. Anyway, this actually isn't the reason I called you in here. We need to discuss your family in Forks."

"What about them?" I asked as I shifted uncomfortably. I was trying not to think about them. I knew Charlie had to be going through hell looking for me.

"I made some calls to Forks. Your father is searching high and low for you."

I looked down guiltily. I hated this. I hated that Charlie had to suffer like this. That was the last thing I wanted. But what other chose did I have? I couldn't exactly tell him the truth,

"Bella, I didn't tell you this to make you feel guilty. You are not responsible for this," Carlisle said gently.

I picked my head up and looked at him. "I don't know what to do, Carlisle. I mean, I obviously can't tell him the truth."

"I have a solution, but you won't like it," he warned.

I raised an eyebrow indicating for him to tell me.

"As a father, I know that there is no way your parents will ever stop looking for you as long as they have hope that you are alive," Carlisle to told me pointedly.

My eyes widened as I realized what he was suggesting. "Y...you want to fake my death? Carlisle, that'll kill them!"

"I know. I know it will be difficult for them to go on after your 'death', but at least they'll have an answer. It will be much worse for them to spend their lives wondering what happened," Carlisle said.

I sighed. I hated this idea. I hated the idea of letting my family believe what I was dead. But Carlisle was right. I had no other real chose. My only choice was between letting my parents think I was dead or allowing them to spend their lives searching for me in vein. Both were horrible choices, but one was less horrible than the other. "Okay. Do it.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Part of this chapter is based on events that happened in 'New Moon'.**

**Edward's POV**

I slowly made my way to Bella's bedroom window one night. I couldn't help it. I had to go back. I Missed her so much. All I thought about every minute of every day was being with her again. I knew it was unfair of me, but I had to see her.

I of course didn't intend for her to see me. I would just sneak in while she was asleep, make sure she was alright, and then leave again. She would never even know I was there. I was sure she'd probably forgotten all about me by now anyway. I only wish I could do the same.

I climbed into Bella's window and looked around. What I found shocked me. I found nothing. Bella was nowhere to be found and her bed looked like it hadn't been slept in. It was impossible. It three in the morning. Humans would be fast asleep by now

Soon, I started to hear voices downstairs. Due to my vampire hearing, I was able to make them out clear as day. It was Charlie, Billy Black, and his son, Jacob, who it appeared, had become a werewolf. The stench of wet dog reeked from him.

"There could still be hope, Charlie," I heard Billy Black say.

"I don't see how. They found her truck in the middle of the river. Her purse washed up on shore," Charlie said. His voice was very choked up, like he'd been crying.

I wondered who they were talking about. Whose truck had been found in the river and why was it upsetting Charlie so much.

My eyes widened as realization hit me. I didn't see Bella's truck in the driveway when came over. I didn't really think much of it at the time. I just figured it was in the shop or something, but what if it wasn't. What if the person Charlie was talking about was Bella?

No! No, it couldn't be. I wouldn't let myself go there. Bella was not dead. She couldn't be.

"I'm so sorry, Charlie," Jacob was saying remorsefully.

"I wonder if she did it on purpose," Charlie said.

"No, Bella would never do anything like that," Jacob said.

My cold, dead heart sank. They were talking about Bella. They were saying that Bella was... That my beautiful Bella was... gone. It couldn't be. I couldn't survive that. She had to be alive. She just had to be. And what was this about her doing herself? She wouldn't. She could never hurt herself like that.

"The old Bella wouldn't have. But she hasn't been the old Bella in a long time. Not since that little bastard left," Charlie said angrily.

I knew Charlie was referring to me. And he was right. This was my fault. If Bella was... If she was dead, then it was all my fault. It was my job to protect her and I failed.

I felt the pain start to overwhelm me. It was worse than anything I've ever felt, including what I felt when Carlisle changed me. I felt like someone had ripped a whole in me. My Bella was gone and the last thing I said to her was that she was not good for me. I ripped her heart out the way mine was being ripped out right now. She'd died thinking that I didn't love her.

I fell to the ground and began tearlessly sobbing. What was I supposed to do now? I had nothing now. The only reason I had for existing was gone. Dead somewhere at the bottom of the river. Now there was nothing left for me. Nothing but death.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

**Bella's POV**

I made my way downstairs on morning after waking up. Another difference between me and every other vampire was that I needed to sleep sometimes. Not often, just about once a week or so to recharge.

I smelt an aroma of human food as I walked downstairs. Esme had obviously cooked breakfast for me.

"Morning, Bella, I made you some eggs and bacon," Esme said before handing me the plate.

I smiled at her and took the offered plate. "Thanks, Esme."

I sat down and began eating. I hate human food about as often as I slept. I still craved human food, not nearly as often as blood, but I did. This morning I was especially craving it.

Soon, Rosalie and Emmett entered the room. "What is that foul smell?" Rose asked.

I rolled my eyes at her. "It's food. I'm sure you remember it from when you were human."

"I'll never understand how you can eat that stuff, Bella. What do you need it for when you can just as easily go out and eat a bear?" Emmett asked me.

I laughed. "I don't need it. It's good sometimes. It's like a craving for something different."

"You mean like human blood?"

"No. Nothing compares to human blood," I told him. Human blood was the ultimate treat, even to me. I'd never actually tasted it, but I knew it had to be amazing.

"Alright, both of you, leave Bella alone and let her eat," Esme ordered.

"Alright, Bella, eat your cardboard. We'll get you some real food later," Emmett said.

"You know, most people think this is real food," I said.

"Well, then they've never had a good bear. What do you say? Later tonight?" he asked.

"I'm there," I told him. I was definitely up for a good hunt. I was still a newborn, so I needed to hunt every couple of days. I usually went with Carlisle, but I doubted he'd have a problem with me going with the others instead.

Suddenly we all heard Alice scream from the other room. "Carlisle, Esme, Everybody!"

We all got up and practically sprinted into the living room. "Alice, what is it? What happened?" I asked. Alice was on the couch with Jasper looking upset.

"What's going on?" Carlisle asked when he entered the room. He looked worried.

"What did you see, Darling?" Jasper asked as he put an arm around her.

"It's Edward," Alice said.

I flinched as soon as I heard the name. I felt a plethora of emotions. Hurt and anger of course, but also worry. What had Alice seen about Edward that would scare her so much? Was he in trouble?

"Edward knows you're no longer in Forks. He must have gone there to check on you or something. He picked the worst time to do so too. He went just after your death had been faked.

"Edward thinks I'm dead?" I asked in horror. I knew that my death had already been faked. Emmett and Jasper had taken my truck to Seattle and set the scene. But I never thought that Edward would ever think that as well. It never occurred to me that he would even go back to Forks. Why would he? He'd already made his choice to never see me again.

"It gets worse. He's planning to kill himself," Alice said urgently.

There was a collection of gasps from everyone. "Oh God, no," Esme cried.

"Are you sure, Alice?" I asked. I felt myself more fear build inside of me than I'd ever felt before. I didn't want this. Yes, I was angry at Edward for what he did and I wasn't sure if I would ever be able to forgive him, but I didn't want him to die.

Alice nodded to me. "I heard him talking to 'Bella' in the meadow. He told her he was going to be with her soon. He said he was going to end it all. I'm not sure how he's going to do it, but he is."

"I know how. A few days before you all left, Edward told me what he'd do if he ever wanted to kill himself. He said he would go to Italy," I explained.

"He's going to the Volturi? Stupid," Rosalie stated.

"I'm going to kill him. He doesn't need to worry about killing himself because I'm going to do it for him," Carlisle fumed. He sounded more furious and worried than I'd ever seen him before.

"We have to get him back. We have to bring him home," Esme said.

"Oh, I'm going to bring him home alright, then I'm going to lock him up for the rest of his life," Carlisle promised. "Emmett, Rose, Jasper, and Alice, go pack. Esme, I know you want to come to, but I need you to stay here with Bella."

"What? Hell, no, Carlisle, I'm coming with you," I protested. There was no way I was going to just sit here on pins and needles. I needed to be there. Seeing me was the only thing that would stop Edward from this suicide mission he was on.

"No, you're not. I'm not risking putting you in front of the Volturi," Carlisle said firmly.

"Carlisle-"

"Bella listen to me," Carlisle said before walking towards me and placing his hands on my shoulders. "I know you want to go. I understand, but if you do, you could be putting your life at risk. The Volturi are unpredictable. You would be an anomaly to them. An anomaly they may wish to destroy. I won't all that. So pleas, I am asking you to heed me on this."

I was quiet for several seconds before nodding my head. "Okay."

Xxxxxxxxxxx

I watched from my bedroom window as most of the others piled into Carlisle's car and sped away. I felt horrible for what I was about to do. I had lied to Carlisle when I told him I would stay. There was no way I was staying there while Edward's life was in danger. Despite it all, I still loved him. I couldn't let him die.

I quickly jumped out the window and made my way over to Emmett's jeep. I'd taken his keys while no one was looking. I got into the car and put the key into the ignition.

I took a deep breath as I got ready to leave. "I'm sorry. I hope you'll all forgive me for this," I said to no one in particular before peeling out of the driveway.


	7. Chapter 7

**Carlisle's POV**

As soon as we all got off the plane, I turned on my cellphone. Almost instantly it started ringing. I looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Esme. I immediately answered it. "Hi, Love. We just got off the plane. It's going to be a while before I can ease your mind.

_"Carlisle, Bella's gone!" _Esme exclaimed.

I immediately froze. "What? What do you mean she's gone?"

_"I went to check on her about an hour after you left. I was worried and I knew she was too so I figured we could be worried together. When I got to her room, she was gone. I went outside to find her and I realized Emmett's Jeep was gone too," _Esme explained.

I pulled the phone away a little and turned to my children. "Emmett, I need to ask you a question and you are to answer me honestly. Did you give Bella the keys to your car?"

"No," Emmett said. I could tell by the confused look on his face that he was telling the truth. I always knew when my children were lying. Or at least most of the time. I really should've known when Bella made that promise to me earlier that she was lying, but she never had before, so I believed her.

I was pulled from my thoughts by Esme's voice. "_Carlisle, she's coming your way. You know that."_

I sighed. I did know that. It was obvious that Bella was planning to come try to help save Edward. She wouldn't take Emmett's car and sneak off like this otherwise. "Yes, I know."

_"You have to stop her. If the Volturi finds out about her-"_

"Darling, calm down. I will find her. I will bring her home. I will bring them both home," I promised. And I would. I would bring all my children home. I couldn't promise that Edward and Bella would be in one piece after I was done with them, but I would bring them home

"_You'd better. And you'd better bring yourself home too. Whatever you do, just be careful. I can't lose any of you. I love you, Carlisle," _Esme said.

"I love you too. I will call you as soon as I retrieve our wayward children. Goodbye, Darling," I said before hanging up and turning to my children, all of whom looked shocked and worried. "I'm sure you've all heard."

Rosalie nodded. "Bella was stupid enough to steal Emmett's car and come here even though you told her not to."

"Rose," Emmett scolded.

"What? It's true. Now we just have two people to rescue," Rosalie said.

"Enough," I told them sternly. I rubbed my temple as I tried to come up with a plan of action. I really had to figure out things out quickly. Lord only knew how much time I had to stop Edward from doing something else so incredibly foolish. "Alice can you tell me how much time we have to stop, Edward?"

Rose gazed off into space as she tried to get a vision. After a minute, she shook her head sadly. "I'm only getting a few flashes. I think it's because Edward's future is tied to Bella's, and as you know, it's sometimes hard to get visions from Bella now."

I nodded. Alice had been having difficulty getting visions of Bella since her vampire powers came in. I had a theory that it was because her ability to shield mind reading had been expanded to cover other gifts as well. As it was, Alice probably only got the few visions of Bella she did because Bella was still a newborn and therefore had trouble controlling her gift.

"Alright, you all stay here and see if you can't intercept Bella. I'm going after Edward," I told them. It was the only plan I could come up with, and if I were honest, I really didn't want them at the Volturi. Two of my children being at risk was quite enough.

"You're going by yourself?" Alice asked, sounding worried.

"I'll be fine. Don't worry. Just don't let Bella leave if you find her," I told them. I then walked towards the exit of the airport.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

**Bella's POV**

I drove the car I took from the airport as fast as I could towards Edward's scent. I'd arrived in Italy about an hour earlier, probably just after Carlisle and the others had. I'd actually seen them talking when I got there and just narrowly missed them seeing me. I wasn't sure how I'd made it so quickly after them, but it didn't matter. All that mattered was getting to Edward before he did something stupid. Or I should say doing another thing that was stupid.

I wasn't sure where I was going as I drove or even if I was going in the right direction. I had no idea where the Volturi was located. My only clue in finding this place was Edward's scent, and for all I knew Edward had gone to a bunch of other places before going to the Volturi.

Before I knew it, I came to a huge castle. Something told me this was the place. Edward had said that the Volturi was like royalty, and royalty and castles usually went hand and hand.

I quickly stopped the car and got out. I didn't even hesitate to go to the door. I probably should've, given everything Carlisle told me about the Volturi, but right now my only concern was Edward. I wanted to save him so that I could kill him myself later.

I walked inside and immediately started sniffing Edward out. I walked through a large entryway and spotted a set of double doors. I walked past a receptionist desk with where a surprisingly human woman was sitting and headed for the doors.

"Wait! You can't go in there!" the woman said.

"Like hell I can't," I said as I continued to walk towards the double doors.

"They'll kill you if you interrupt them," the woman told me.

I stopped and walked over to her. "My mate is in there, okay? He's going to get himself killed if I don't go in there,"

Soon, the doors opened and a male vampire came out. "Is there a problem out here?"

I immediately turned to him. I was a bit intimidated by the robed figure, but I was determined to save Edward. "Yeah, there's a problem. Edward Cullen. He's in there doing something incredibly stupid and I need to stop him.

The hooded figured just stared at me before saying, "One moment," and disappearing back the room.

I waited very impatiently for the unknown vampire to come back out. He didn't but another man did. He was a dark haired vampire with eyes redder than mine. He looked like he was in charge.

"You must be Isabella. I'm Aro," he said holding out his hand.

I gulped a little after realizing that this man knew exactly who I was. I wondered if he also knew what I was or how different I was from him and all the other vampires.

I slowly placed my hand in his. He didn't shake it; he just held it and looked down at it in awe. "Fascinating. You're a shield."

I already recognized the term. Carlisle had explained to me what he believed my gift was. What surprised me was that this Aro person knew.

"Ah, you're wondering how I know of your gift," Aro said before releasing my hand. "You see, I have a talent myself. A talent you seem to be immune to. It really is an amazing gift you have. I've never seen anything like. Though I shouldn't be surprised. Your entire existence is extraordinary."

"Y...you know what I am?" I asked astonished. This Aro guy didn't just seem to know I was different; he seemed to know exactly what I was.

"But of course. Come inside and I will tell you everything. There is also a certain young mind reader you seem to be most anxious to see," Aro said as he gestured to the other room.

I immediately went into the other room. Two things I wanted waited in that room. Edward and the answers I'd spent over a month trying to find.

When I got into the other room, I saw Edward standing in the middle of the room in front of a group of figures dressed similar to Aro. "Edward."

Edward turned to look at me. Slowly a shocked expression appeared on his face. "B...Bella?"

I immediately ran into his arms. For the moment, I'd forgotten everything he was supposed to be pissed at him for. I was just so glad he was alright.

I felt Edward's arms tighten around me. It was nice to feel that again. I'd almost forgotten what it felt like to have him hold me like this.

"I thought you were dead. I was at your house. I heard Charlie talking to the Blacks. They were saying that you were dead," Edward said as he continued to hold me.

After the relief of knowing that Edward would be okay wore off, my anger started to return. I started to remember how much Edward had put me through. Everything from leaving me and taking the people I considered to be my family to trying to commit suicide.

I pulled away from him. "What were you doing at my house, Edward?"

"I was there to see you. I needed to know that you were okay. Hey, why are you wearing sunglasses?" he asked.

I ignored his question. Not because I didn't want him to know, but because I was fumed and had a one track mind. "Why would you care? I thought you said that you didn't love me. Or could it be that you lied to me when you said that?"

Edward cringed. He could obviously tell how enraged I was. "Bella, can we please not do this here? Come on; let's just get out of here. You shouldn't be here anyway."

I turned and looked at Aro. "No, I'm not going anywhere. Not until he tells me what I want to know."

"But of course, Isabella. I do think we should wait for Carlisle though. He should be here any minute," Aro said.

I heard Edward gulp next to me. He was obviously worried about Carlisle's reaction to what he'd tried to do. I was worried as well. Carlisle wasn't likely to be very pleased with how I'd disobeyed him.

"Carlisle's here?" Edward asked.

"Yeah. If it makes you feel better, you're not the only one on his hit list," I told him.

"I believe I hear him now actually," Aro said before going over to the door and holding it open.

Carlisle entered a second later looking none too pleased.

"Carlisle, my friend, it is so good to see you," Aro said as he held out his hand.

"You as well, Aro," Carlisle said before reluctantly offering his own hand.

Aro chuckled after a moment of holding Carlisle's hand. "Yes, the young one's do tend to keep us on our toes, don't they. Try not to be too hard on them."

Edward leaned into my ear. "Aro's gift is a lot like mine only more enhanced. The moment he touched Carlisle's hand, he knew everything Carlisle has ever thought. By the way, I know what he's think now too and he is not happy with you or me."

I gulped. "Carlisle, I'm sorry. I-"

Carlisle raised his hand to cut me off. He then turned back to Aro. "Aro, I would like to thank you for your hospitality towards my children, but I think it's time we were on our way."

"Carlisle, no. He knows what I am," I protested. I knew he was unhappy with me and was probably even less happy with me trying to argue, but I couldn't leave until I had the answers I needed. I'd waited way too long already.

Carlisle looked at me and then turned to Aro. "Is that true, Aro?"

"I'm afraid so, my friend," Aro said before turning to the other hooded figures. "You can call go now. I can handle things from here."

I watched as the others left before turning to Aro. "Well?"

"Bella," Edward and Carlisle scolded. I think they were worried about how my impatience would be received by Aro.

"I apologize," I told him. I didn't want to upset him, I just wanted my answers.

"Quite alright, my dear. Your impatience is understandable. I'm afraid your patience with me will dwindle even further by the time I am finished. As will yours Carlisle," Aro said.

"What do you mean, Aro?" Carlisle asked politely. I could tell he was as anxious to hear this as I was, but he seemed to understand the importance of being polite.

"What's going on here? What are you all talking about?" Edward asked.

I sighed and began taking off my sunglasses. "I'm surprised you didn't notice yet."

Edward gasped in shock when he saw my bloodshot eyes. Soon though, shock turned to anger. "Who did this to you?"

"Nobody," I told him.

"Don't protect the bastard! Tell me who it was," Edward ordered before turning to Carlisle. "Was it you?"

"Edward, I suggest you take a step back and realize who it is you are speaking to," Carlisle said as he made his way over to us with a stern expression on his face. It was obvious that his patience for both of us was at an end.

"He didn't do it, Edward. Nobody did," I told him again.

"Now that's where I must disagree with you, Isabella. While it is true you were not bitten, someone is indeed responsible," Aro said.

I turned to face him. "What do you mean? What am I? Human? Vampire? What?"

"Yes," he said simply. "You would be considered a half-breed I believe. Both human and vampire."

"That's impossible," Edward said next to me.

Aro laughed. "Yes, I assumed so as well. If I didn't know this for a fact, I too would say it was it was impossible.

"Know what for a fact? What am I?" I asked.

"As of now there is no term for what you are. The best way I know to describe it is a second generation vampire with human blood flowing through you," Aro said.

"How is that possible?" Carlisle asked.

"The same way it is possible for humans to conceive I suppose," Aro said.

"But vampires can't conceive children," Edward argued.

"Not true. I did my research. There have been cases of children born to vampires when the mother was human. However until you, Isabella, there were no known births from two vampires," Aro said.

"You're saying that I was born to two vampires. That's not possible. My parents are both human," I told him. This made less and less sense with each passing word. I knew for a fact that my parents were human because every time I was even near Charlie the last time I saw him, I was craving his blood. He was human.

"Again, I must disagree. Now I don't deny that the people you grew up with were indeed human, they were not your parents.

"Then who is?" I asked as I tried to get over the shock of what I was being told.

Aro didn't answer. He simply turned his gaze to Carlisle and stared intently.


	8. Chapter 8

**Carlisle's POV**

To say I was shocked would be an understatement. Aro was staring right at me after Bella asked about her true parents. The way he looked at me was like he was answering her question. He was insinuation that I was her true father. But that couldn't be true, right? Don't get me wrong, I loved Bella. I always had and I always would, but this was impossible. The only person this could've happened with is Esme and I would've known if she were pregnant.

"C...Carlisle? Is he saying what I think he is?" Bella asked. Her voice was shaky and filled with emotion.

I pushed my shock down enough so that I could gain a clear head and figure out exactly what was going on. I had to for Bella's sake. Because at the end of the day, when everything was said and done, I was Bella's father. Whether or not I was her father in every way remained to be seen, but I had always seen her as my daughter. That meant making things better for her.

I took a step towards Aro. "Are you?"

"I'm afraid so, Carlisle," Aro said.

"Oh my God!" Bella exclaimed.

I head what I could only guess was Edward taking her into his arms to comfort her as I focused on Aro. I wanted to go to Bella, but I felt that the best thing I could do for her right now was get her the answers she sought, that we all sought. "How is this possible, Aro? My wife was never pregnant."

"Oh, no, no. Not Esme, just you," Aro said.

I immediately shook my head. That was even less possible. "I don't know what game you're playing here, Aro, but I have never cheated on my wife."

"Carlisle,"

I turned around to face Edward, who had an upset Bella wrapped in his arms.

"Remember that vampire from Canada? Melinda I believe her name was?" Edward asked.

Realization immediately hit me. I did remember that. It was eighteen years ago. My family and I had spent a bit of time in Vancouver. Melinda was a seemingly vegetarian. In truth, her gold eyes had just been an illusion. That was her specialty. She could convince anyone of anything she wanted. Her talent was pretty much limitless. She'd done a lot to our family back then. But me sleeping with her wasn't one of them. "Edward that didn't happen. I never-"

"You did. You just didn't know it. You thought it was Esme, but it wasn't. She figured that out through something you said and I read it in her mind. She made me promise not to say anything. She knew you'd feel guilty about it even though it wasn't your fault," Edward explained with an apologetic look on his face.

I felt like someone I'd just been toppled over by a dozen newborns. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I was being told that I'd conceived a child with someone I didn't even know I'd been with.

Bella pulled away from Edward. "I don't understand. What are you guys talking about? What is happening?"

Edward cupped the sides of Bella's face. "It's not your fault, Love. If you never believe anything I ever say again, believe that. This isn't your fault."

"What isn't? Somebody tell me what's on! Who is this Melinda person?" Bella asked desperately.

I looked her apologetically. I felt so guilty for not being there for her. I was her father. I could hardly believe it, but I was. She should've been able to count on me. "I'm sorry, Bella. If I had known..."

"None of knew, Carlisle. I swear to you, if we knew this, we would've told you," Edward promised.

"I know, son," I assured him. I neither him, nor my wife would ever hide this from me. The transgression I seemed to have committed against Esme they would hide because they knew I'd feel guilty, which I did. I'd cheated on my wife. Yes, realistically, I knew that Melinda had tricked me with her gift into believing she was my wife, but I'd still been with someone who wasn't my wife.

At the same time though, I couldn't be entirely sorry for it. If what Aro was telling us was true, and it seemed that it was, that transgression had created Bella. I loved her. I thought of her as a daughter before this whole thing even came up and I would never see her in any other way.

Bella looked at me pleadingly. "Carlisle, please tell me what's going on. I don't understand this."

I went over to her and pulled her into my arms. "I know, Bella. I don't fully understand this either. The only thing you need to understand right now is that I'm your father and I'm going make everything okay."

"How touching," Aro said.

Edward growled, forcing me to hold him back as he went to try to attack the man. "Edward, don't."

"This is his fault. He's known the entire time and he never said a word to us," Edward said. He'd obviously read Aro's mind.

Aro shrugged. "Far be it from me to interfere," Aro said.

I glared at him. I had a feeling that Aro's interference had a great deal to do with why I hadn't learned about all this sooner. "How long have you known, Aro?"

"He's known since the beginning? Melinda went to him about it. When Bella was born she appeared human. He thought of killing her, but he was curious to see if she'd ever exhibit vampire tendencies, so he let her live and sent her to human parents. He's been keeping an eye on her ever since," Edward explained.

Aro smiled at Edward. "That is a truly remarkable talent you have there, Edward. Are you certain you won't join us?"

Edward's glare was all the answer Aro needed.

"Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you give her to me?" I asked. Shock was wearing off and it was being replaced with anger. I was angry that Bella had been kept from me for so long. It didn't matter that Bella existed because I was tricked. I didn't care. I was her father. I should've been allowed to raise her.

"She appeared human. While I certainly hoped she'd gain our powers, I couldn't be sure. Human children cannot live with vampires," Aro tried to say. I didn't believe him though.

Neither did Edward it seemed. "That's not why. He wanted to covet her for himself if she developed our skills. He wanted to possess the only vampire ever to be born with her abilities. He knew that would be impossible if he let you take charge of her upbringing. He figured that if she grew up with humans and no influence from us, that she would be more likely to join his ranks. He didn't take into account that she would find us."

Aro chuckled. "Yes, that was unfortunate. I will tell you though that if anything could make me a believer in fate, this is it. It's simply remarkable how you found them, Isabella."

Bella pulled away from me and glared icily at Aro. "So this was all a game to you? You screwed with our lives for your own agenda?"

"That's what the Volturi does," Edward said.

"Edward," I chastised. While I happened to agree with his assessment, I couldn't let him lose his temper. Aro could order us all killed if he wanted. I couldn't let that happen. We needed to get out of there. "I think it's time we left."

"But of course, Carlisle. I hope to see you and your family again soon," Aro said.

"Don't hold your breath," Edward snarled.

"Edward, just go," I ordered. I watched them leave and then turned to Aro. "I'm not going to forget this, Aro. I promise you, one day, you will answer for this."

"It isn't wise to threaten me, Carlisle," Aro warned me.

"Who said anything about threats?" I asked before walking out the door.


	9. Chapter 9

**Carlisle's POV**

I made my way the front door of my house the next day. I'd sent the others on a hunt as soon as we got back from Italy with instructions for Jasper to keep an eye on Bella and Edward. Bella because she still had poor control over her bloodlust, not to mention that she'd just been through the ringer, and Edward because every ounce of trust I had for him was now gone.

Just as I stepped inside, Esme ran down the stair and into my arms. "Hey, Love," I said as I hugged her back.

Esme pulled away after a moment. "Thank God you're back. Where are the children? Are Edward and Bella alright?"

"They're fine. I sent them all hunting," I told her as took off my coat and hung it up on the coat rack by the door.

"Why would you do that without having them come in first? I wanted to see them," Esme said.

"I know, but Bella was in dire need of a hunt and you and I need to talk in private," I told her. Honestly, I just didn't want Bella in the house when we talked about her mother. I knew I was going to have bridge the subject with her at some point, but I didn't want to do that until I knew exactly what I was going to say.

"What do we need to talk about? Did something happen in Italy?" Esme asked concerned.

"You could say that," I told her as I lead the way into the living room. I knew she would follow.

"Did they find out about Bella?" Esme asked.

"They already knew. At least Aro did," I said through gritted teeth as I sat down. Thinking about Aro and what he did made me angry. He'd given Bella away to strangers so that he could exploit her in the future for his own personal gain.

Esme came over and sat next to me. "Okay, well, you obviously all got out of there. So what happened? Why are so upset?"

I turned and looked her straight in the eye. "I found out something. Something you've been trying to keep from me."

Esme looked at me with a confused expression on her face. "What? Carlisle, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Melinda," I said simply.

Esme stared at me for moment until realization hit and then she looked away. "Edward told you."

"He didn't really have much choice. Why didn't you tell me?" I asked.

"Because I know you Carlisle. I knew you would beat yourself up over it even though it wasn't your fault. It wasn't your fault, Carlisle," Esme said firmly.

I knew she meant that, which both made me feel guilty and reassured me. I was glad that she wasn't angry with me, but I also felt that she should be. I felt that I should've been able to see through the lie. At the same time though, I couldn't really regret it, not when it gave me, gave us all Bella. Her existence wasn't something that I would ever regret.

I was pulled from my thoughts as Esme placed her hands on the sides of my face and forced me to look at her. "Carlisle, please don't feel guilty. It's not your fault. I never blamed you. I know you thought it was me. I know you would take it back if you could."

I gently took her hand from my face and held it tightly. "No, Love, I wouldn't."

"What?" Esme asked, sounding confused and hurt.

"No, that's not what I mean, Darling. You are the only woman that I have ever or would ever want to be with," I assured her.

"Then why would you say that you don't regret it?" Esme asked.

"Because of Bella," I told her.

"Bella? What does she have to do with this? I don't even think she'd been born when this happened.

"No, she hadn't. Look, things got very complicated in Volterra. Aro had already known who she was when he met her. He knew more about her than I did. More than she knew about herself. He had all the answers we'd been looking for this past month," I said.

"Well?" she asked, prompting me to continue.

I took a deep breath. "Bella was never human. Well, not fully human anyway. I don't know why she appeared to be for so long, but it was enough to convince Aro to hand her over to humans just in case she never gained vampire powers."

"Wait, I don't understand. If she's not human, what is she? And what does it have to do with what happened between you and... and _her?" _Esme asked, her voice growing angry when she spoke of Melinda.

"I will explain all that. Just listen. I don't know how it's possible, but Bella is a second generation vampire. Her parents are both vampires," I explained.

Esme stared at me awestruck. "Carlisle, that's impossible.

"It should be, but it's not. A fact I am extremely grateful for. That's why I can't regret what happened that night," I said before giving my wife a meaningful look.

Esme looked confused at first, but then she must have caught the look I was giving her because her eyes widened at the shock of it all. "A...are you saying that Bella... That she's..."

I nodded. "I found out tonight. That's why Edward told me what I did," I told her.

"Is Bella okay?" Esme asked.

I smiled inwardly. It warmed my heart that Esme's first thought was for my daughter. It didn't surprise me though. Esme was a remarkable woman. I knew that she wouldn't take what happened out on Bella. "She's confused. She doesn't understand. I haven't really gotten the chance to really make her understand. I don't know how to explain the situation without her feeling guilty."

"But it's not her fault," Esme argued.

"Of course not, but you know Bella. She will find a way to blame herself for the things Melinda did. I can't let that happen," I said. I refused to allow my daughter to blame herself for things she had no control over.

"Well, we have to tell her. We can't keep it from her," Esme said.

"I know. I just want to find a way to do it where it won't hurt her so much," I said.

"I think that the best thing you can do is be honest with her and make sure she knows how you feel. I'll do the same. I'll make sure she knows how much she means to me. Carlisle, I don't care how that girl came to be. As far as I'm concerned, she's my daughter," Esme said.

I smiled. "As far as I'm concerned she is too. I just hope we can get her to see that, and I hope she can forgive me for not being there."

"Carlisle, that's not your fault. You didn't know. You had no way of knowing that Bella existed. For one, you didn't even know that you'd slept with Melinda. That's my fault. I should've told you. Maybe if I had..."

"No! Bella's existence could never have been anticipated. Nothing like that had ever happened before. No one could've known," I said.

Esme smiled at me. "Then we're in agreement. It's neither of our faults. As you said, no one could've anticipated it."

"I know, but I still can't help but feel bad for not being in her life for seventeen years. And then there was leaving her in Forks."

Esme sighed. "Okay, you have a point about the Forks thing. We never should've let Edward talk us into going. Speaking of Edward, have you spoken to him about anything?"

I shook my head. "No, not yet. Everything got pushed aside when Aro told us everything. I do intend to have a long conversation with Edward soon enough though."

"God, I forgot to ask, what happened with Edward in Volterra? Was that discussed at all?"

"Not really. As I said, things got sidetracked when we realized that Aro knew all there was to know about Bella. She became my first priority," I said.

"Of course," Esme agreed

"But obviously, Edward didn't get the chance to carry out his plan. We have Bella to thank for that. She was already there when I got to the Volturi," I explained

"I know that the situation with Bella had to take center stage, but we need to deal with Edward soon. He tried to kill himself. We can't just simply let that go," Esme said.

"I don't intend to, nor do I intend to any of the others stunts he's pulled in the last few months ago. He and I are going to be having a very long talk before this night is over," I said. I already knew how I was going to approach things with Edward. I'd given it a great deal of thought on the way to Italy.

"Carlisle, I'm not sure that just talking to him is going to be enough. I mean, we can talk until we're blue in the face, but do you really think that's going to be enough to make him think twice next time?" she asked.

It was like she'd read my mind. Of course I knew that words weren't going to be enough. It was time for me to show my son a bit of tough love. "Don't worry. By the time I'm finished, Edward will not even consider doing anything like this again.

Just then, we all heard the front door open. We both immediately got up to greet our children.

When we got to them, Esme immediately gave Bella a brief hug. "Are you okay, honey?"

Bella looked back and forth between me and Esme. "Did he... I mean do you..."

Esme smiled at her. "Yes, Carlisle told me everything. I want you to know that none of it matters to me. My feelings for you are unchanged."

Bella smiled and hugged my wife again.

"Bella, are you alright?" I asked.

Bella pulled away from Esme and looked down. "I'm so confused. I don't understand any of this."

I placed a finger under her chin and lifted it up so that she would look at me. "I know you're confused. I'm going to try to explain everything to you. Would you wait for me in the living room please?"

Bella nodded and allowed Esme to lead her away.

"Okay, what's going on? What does Bella know that the rest of us don't?" Jasper asked.

"Yeah, and what did Esme mean when she said it didn't change anything? What doesn't change anything?" Emmett questioned.

I placed my hand up to stop all the questions. "Listen, I know you all have questions, and they will be answered, but not right now. Right now, I need you all to make yourself scarce for a few hours. Your mother and I need to speak with Bella. I will explain everything once I have made Bella understand."

They all reluctantly started to leave, including Edward. That is until I grabbed him by the arm. "Not you. You will go upstairs and wait in my study. I will be with you shortly. Go!"

Knowing how upset I was, Edward cringed and immediately started for the stairs.


	10. Chapter 10

**Bella's POV**

I sat on the couch with Esme as we waited for Carlisle to return. Esme was rubbing my shoulders to try to calm my nerves. I was extremely grateful for it. I was nervous as hell. This would be the first time I really sat down and spoke with Carlisle after finding out who he really was to me. I just wasn't sure what to say to him.

"It's okay, sweetheart," Esme assured me.

I was really glad that Esme's feelings for me seemed to be the same. She had said that her feelings for me were the same, but I hadn't been completely sure that she wasn't just telling me what I wanted to hear. I didn't understand much about what had happened, but I did know from the things Carlisle and Edward said that I wasn't exactly wanted and that my mother had tricked Carlisle into being with her. I wouldn't blame Esme or Carlisle if they didn't want anything to do with me.

Carlisle came into the room seconds later, pulling me out of my thoughts. "Sorry about that. I just wanted to get the others squared away. I had everyone except for Edward leave so that we could talk alone."

Esme stood up from the couch. "On that note, I'll be upstairs."

"You don't have to leave, Darling," Carlisle said.

"I know, but I think this moment needs to be between the two of you. Besides, I want to have a few words with Edward," Esme said. From her tone of voice, it didn't sound like those would be happy words.

Carlisle nodded. "He's in my office. At least that better be where he is."

Esme nodded and walked out of the room.

Carlisle came over and sat down next to me, causing me to feel uncomfortable again and look down at my hands.

"Bella, please look at me," Carlisle requested.

It took me a minute, but I did finally meet his eyes. When I did, I saw what I always saw when I looked at him. Compassion, understanding, and love.

"I know that this is all very overwhelming for you. I know you want answers, and I will give them to you the best I can, but I need you to understand something first. No matter what you hear, I want you to understand that you are not responsible. Okay?" Carlisle asked.

His words made me even more nervous than I already was. It really had to be bad for him to start things off that way. "Okay."

"Alright. Eighteen years ago, we all lived in Canada for a while. One day while I was hunting, I met this vampire. Her name was Melinda. She appeared to a vegetarian like us, so we all became friends with her. Unfortunately, things weren't as they appeared. She had the power to create illusions," Carlisle started.

"So her being a vegetarian, that was an illusion? Why would she do that?" I asked. It didn't make sense to me. Why would my mother bother with the Cullens? What was the point?

Carlisle hesitated. He seemed to be trying to pick his words very carefully so as not to offend me.

"Carlisle, please. You can't protect me from the truth," I told him. I was afraid of what he was going to say, but I had to hear it. I needed to know everything so that I could fully understand how I came to be. I needed to know who I was.

Carlisle nodded. "You're right. You deserve the truth. All of it. Your mother was a lot like James. She enjoyed causing people pain. It was a lot like a hunt to her. She went out of her way to find covens that she could invade and destroy from the inside out. I think she chose us because we intrigued her. We were the only vegetarian coven she'd ever come across."

"W...what did she do?" I asked, afraid of the answer.

"She messed with our heads mostly. She got close to us to get to know us and exploited our weaknesses," Carlisle explained.

"Like what? What exactly did she do?" I knew Carlisle was trying not to tell me, but I needed to know exactly what she did.

Carlisle sighed. "Well, for example, you know Jasper has struggled with his self-control, right? Well, she fed off of that. She presented herself as Alice in an illusion and convinced him that it would be okay for them to drink from humans just once. That I would be alright with it."

Oh my God," I said. I felt sick. I could only imagine what that must have done to Jasper, and to his and Alice's relationship. "Did... Did Jasper... Did he do it?"

Carlisle nodded with a sad smile on his face. "Yes. He had his doubts about me actually allowing such a thing, but it came from Alice. He had no reason to doubt her. Even so though, he fought it. He fought her. That is until she brought him to an area where a couple of humans were and took the first bite. Once the blood was spilt, Jasper couldn't help himself. When I found out, I was livid with him. You see, Bella, slips are one thing. I understand that. It's very difficult to ignore instincts, but from my understanding, Jasper had gone out with the intention of killing a human."

"It wasn't his fault," I cried. I felt so horrible. Some woman had gone out of her way to cause Jasper pain and that woman was my mother. How was I ever supposed to face him again?

"No, it wasn't, but I didn't have all the facts at the time. All I knew was that Jasper had bitten a human on purpose. Everyone else was just as angry as I was, especially Alice. You see, she was sent a false vision by Melinda, which showed him purposely going after humans with the intent to kill. And poor Jasper didn't know what was going on. He felt so betrayed. He felt like Alice had set him up and sold him out. He was going to leave. He did leave actually. He'd packed his things and left the house without telling anyone. By this time though, we had started to figure out that something wasn't right. Edward had read his thoughts and had told us that Jasper wasn't lying when he said that Alice told him it was okay for him to do what he did. We immediately went after him," Carlisle explained.

"So is that when you knew that it was her?" I asked.

"No. We knew something was wrong, but we hadn't suspected her. We had no reason to. We didn't know about her gift. At that time, we just thought she was a good friend and a fellow vegetarian," he said.

"What else did she do? I mean, I know she had to do at least one other thing otherwise I wouldn't be here. What did she do to you?" Again I was afraid of what I would hear. I knew it was going to be bad.

"With me, I think it was her last ditch effort to finish what she started. We'd figured her out by then. She'd pulled some other stunts, things I won't go into right now, and I'd cast her out. I told her if she came near our family again, I'd destroy her myself," Carlisle said.

I was mildly surprised. It was hard for me to picture Carlisle ever threatening someone like that. He didn't even want to kill James when he came after me. He didn't like the idea of killing anyone. But I supposed that even someone as compassionate as him had his limits, and Melinda obviously found his.

"Anyway, one day, I'm not really sure which one at the moment, she illusioned herself to me as Esme. I didn't even know it until we all heard it in Volterra. Esme knew, as did Edward, but they kept it from me in an effort to keep me from feeling guilty," Carlisle said.

I looked at him and started to cry. "I'm so sorry."

"No! Bella, I do not want you taking this on yourself. This is not your fault. You will not blame yourself for things that were done before you were born. Is that understood?" he asked sternly.

"But-"

"No buts. You are not responsible."

"Then why does it feel like it is?" I asked. It felt like I was responsible, like I should have to make amends for what Melinda did. I felt so guilty for the things she'd done to Jasper and Alice, and Carlisle and Esme. And that was just the stuff I knew about. Who knew what she had done to the others. I felt like because she was technically my mother, I owed the people she'd hurt.

"Because you are a very compassionate and loving your woman and it hurts you that the people you love were hurt by someone who is technically your family. That's what sets you apart from her. You have characteristics that she has never had. You're nothing like her, Bella, and no one blames you for what happened," Carlisle tried to assure me.

"You don't and Esme doesn't, but what about Jasper and Alice. They'll hate me after they find out," I said.

Carlisle shook his head. "No. They could never hate you. They know you, and they know as well as I do that you are not responsible for the actions of another, no matter who that person is to you."

"Oh God. I can't do this anymore. I need to get out of here. I need to think," I said before standing up.

Carlisle stood up as well. "I understand. Take as much time as you need. Just remember that I'm here whenever you need to talk."

"Can I ask you one more question?" There was one more thing I needed to know before I went upstairs.

"Of course. Ask me anything," Carlisle said.

"Are you sorry that it happened? Are you sorry that I'm your daughter?"

"No. Absolutely not," Carlisle said without a moment's hesitation.

I nodded gratefully before walking away.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

**Edward's POV**

I paced the floor of Carlisle's office. I was beyond anxious. Carlisle was so angry with me. I'd never seen him so angry in all the years I'd known him, not even when I came back after those years that I'd fed on humans. I'd really stepped into it this time.

God, how did I let things get this out of control? I never wanted any of this to happen. All I wanted was to protect Bella. I didn't want her to get sucked into my very twisted and very dangerous world. Little did I know that this was her world too. In fact, she belonged in this house more than I did. This was her family.

I stopped abruptly. Maybe it would just be better if I left. I was only complicating things by being there. Bella was going through enough without having me around, as was Carlisle. The last thing either of them needed was to deal with me while trying to figure out where they went from here.

I made the decision. It was time for me to go. I walked out of the room and walked slowly and carefully towards the stairs.

I had just made it to the top of the stairs when I saw Esme coming towards me. I immediately froze.

"Edward Cullen, Just where do you think you're going? I believe your father told you that you were to wait in his office," Esme said sternly.

"I'm leaving. I shouldn't be here. I never should've come back," I said.

The second the words were out of my mouth, I felt my mother grab my by the arm and drag me back into my father's office. "You sit down on that couch over there and you listen to me."

I immediately went over and sat down on the couch near Carlisle's desk.

Esme stared at me with her arms crossed in front of her chest. "Let me make something perfectly clear to you. You're not going anywhere. I'm not going to spend another six months wondering if I'm ever going to see my son again. How could you do that, Edward? You went off the radar for months. We were worried. Your father must have left you like a hundred messages and you never returned any of them. And then for you to go off and try to kill yourself..."

I winced at the pain in my mother's voice towards the end. It was obvious that I'd hurt her a lot. Just another reason that I needed to leave. I'd caused them enough pain. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt anyone."

Esme sighed. "But you did, Edward. You put this family through months of hell. No one more so than Bella. You left her in the woods. You made her believe that she was nothing more than a distraction to you and that the rest of us thought she was nothing more than a nuisance."

"No, I never said that," I told her. I never told Bella that the rest of the family thought of her like that. I would never say that.

"You didn't have to, Edward. What you did say and do spoke for itself. Of course, we played our part as well. We made the decision to go even though we knew it was wrong. That's on us. When you came and asked us to leave, we should've told you no. But we've always had a problem telling you no. That's about to change. You are not going to be allowed to hurt this family without consequences. Do you understand me?" she asked sternly.

"I didn't mean to-"

"Do you understand me?" Esme asked again, louder and more commanding this time.

"Yes, Ma'am," I said quietly.

"Good. Now your father will be up here soon. I will sit here with you while you wait because obviously you can't be trusted not to try to bolt," Esme said before sitting down in the chair in front of Carlisle's desk.

Time seemed to pass really slowly as we sat there in silence. What was only twenty minutes in reality seemed to be about an hour to me. I was almost wishing my father would hurry up and get there. While I knew I was in for one hell of a lecture, I figured it had to be better than sitting there with my mother in an uncomfortable silence.

Soon Carlisle made his way in. He didn't look any happier than he did the last time I saw him. If anything, he was even more upset, and I was sure that was going to get even worse when Esme told him how she found me, which she was sure to do.

"Hey. How'd it go with Bella? Is she alright?" Esme asked Carlisle.

"Not really. She's having a difficult time dealing with things. She's in her room now. She said she needed time to think." Carlisle said.

I felt the urge to bolt from the room and go to my love, but I pushed it down. Something told me that that wouldn't go over well with either of my parents right now.

"How are things in here?' Carlisle asked.

"Well, I found your son here trying to leave," Esme said, sounding very unhappy.

I looked down at my hands, knowing that Carlisle's gaze had just landed on me and that he wasn't happy.

"Is that a fact?" Carlisle asked in a tight and low voice.

"I'll leave you two alone. Edward?"

I looked up at her and saw that her eyes had softened to me.

"I love you, Edward No matter what, don't ever doubt that," she told me before walking out of the room, leaving me alone with my very angry vampire father.


	11. Chapter 11

**Carlisle's POV**

After Esme left, I went over to my desk and sat down. I completely ignored my son. I was too angry to deal with him right now. I needed a few minutes to get my temper under control otherwise I might just end up throttling him.

I had been okay when I first entered the room. I had taken the necessary time to think things through after speaking with Bella and I had been ready to deal with Edward. That was until Esme informed me that Edward had tried to run away. That had absolutely infuriated me. I didn't know what was going through his head. He couldn't have been so stupid as to think he would get away with it. He had to know that I would find him and bring him right back before he even made it to the main road.

I took several deep breaths to get my temper down to the desired level. Then I turned to my nerve racked son. "Get over here."

Edward apparently got his head back because he immediately heeded me and walked over to my desk and sat down in the chair in front of it.

"Tell me, Edward, did you somehow manage to fry your brain recently? Because that's the only explanation I can come up with for you thinking you could get away with trying to run from me. What exactly did you think was going to happen? Because I'll tell you what would've happened. I would've found you within minutes and I would have dragged you right back here," I told him.

"I just thought it would be better for everyone if I left," Edward said.

"Yes, because it worked out so well last time," I said sarcastically. Edward's explanation did nothing but anger me further. It reminded me way too much of what he did all those months ago. You would think he would've learned from it, but apparently not.

Edward looked down at his hands guiltily.

"Look at me!" I ordered. Once he did as I asked, I continued. "You don't get to decide what is best for this family, and it's a good thing too because you wouldn't be very good at it." I knew this probably sounded harsh to him, but I was not interested in appeasing him right now. It was high past time I stopped trying to appease him.

"I...I'm sorry," Edward said.

"You should be. You put this family through hell, Edward. We spent six months wondering if we were ever going to see you again. We spent those same six month wondering where you were and if you were alright. And then the next we do see you again, you've just gone to kill yourself!" I yelled. I was beyond angry. Even after dragging him back from Italy, I couldn't believe that Edward could do something so stupid and selfish.

"I'd just found out that Bella was presumed dead. I couldn't live in a world without her, Carlisle, I just couldn't. You have to understand. You would do the same thing if it were Esme. I know you would," Edward said.

"If I lost your mother, I would want to die inside. I would want to do what you tried to do. But I wouldn't. I wouldn't do that to the rest of you. What you did was selfish. You were ready to kill yourself with no regard for anyone else. That will not go without consequences. The days of you doing whatever you want and getting away with it are over!" I informed him. I'd had enough. I would no longer sit back and do nothing as my children made foolish decisions. It was time they all learned that actions had consequences. Maybe if took the hard line with Edward, it would send a message to all of them to think their actions through.

"W...what kind of consequences?" Edward asked nervously.

"For starters, you're going to hand me your cellphone and the keys to your car right now," I told him while holding out my hand for the desired objects.

Edward's eyes went widened at the prospect of losing his precious Volvo.

"That means now, Edward," I said impatiently.

Edward dug into his pocket and pulled his cellphone and keys out before handing them over to me.

I took both objects from him and placed them in my desk drawer. "By the way, if you had bothered to answer your phone or return the dozens of calls I made to you, you would've known that Bella was alive and you could've avoided a great deal of this."

"Okay, I get it. Is that it?" Edward asked.

"Not even close. I intend to make this a conversation you don't soon forget. That way the next time you decide to do something so stupid, you'll think twice. Now as I said, you will no longer be allowed to do whatever you wish without consequences. From now on, you, as well as your brother and sisters, will have rules to follow. If you choose to disregard those rules, there _will_ be consequences." I never wanted it to be like this. I had never been the authoritarian type father, nor had I intended to. I had always assumed that because my children weren't technically children, they would be able to think things through on their own and make the right decisions. Edward had proven me wrong on that notion, so it was time to take a different tactic.

Edward opened his mouth to object, but I quickly silenced him by placing my hand up in front of him. "I don't want to hear it, Edward. I don't want to hear how unfair you think it is. I don't want to how you are an adult. While that may technically be true, you have not acted like it. In the past six months, you have behaved much more like your physical age than your actual one. You have run away from your problems, disobeyed me, and lied to me on multiple occasions."

"What are you talking about? I didn't lie," Edward said.

"No? So when you told me that Bella understood why we were leaving, you weren't lying to me? How about when you promised me to keep in touch when you left even though you had no intention of doing so? Do not tell me you didn't lie to me, Edward because you did," I said.

Edward had the decency to look ashamed.

"You destroyed ever bit of trust I ever had for you. I apparently can't even trust you to keep yourself safe. And if I can't trust you to protect yourself, I'll have to do it for you," I told him.

Edward looked me right in the eye. "What does that mean?"

"It means that aside from hunting, which you will be doing with me and me alone, you will not leave this house. You will not so much as step onto the front porch without my say so," I informed him.

"You're grounding me?" Edward asked surprised.

I nodded. "Maybe if you lose your freedom for a while, you'll learn to show everyone in this family the respect we deserve."

"I wasn't trying to disrespect you. I wasn't! I was just trying-"

"Edward, right now, I couldn't care less what you were trying to do. I'm not interested in your intentions. I'm only interested in your actions. Your actions were deplorable and you_ will_ be punished for them. That's final!" I said in no nonsense tone.

"How long am I grounded for?" Edward asked.

"Until I say. Until I believe that I can trust you again," I said sternly.

"Fine," Edward said before he started to get up.

"Sit back down! We're not finished," I told. I waited for him to sit down before going on. "Now that we've gotten the father to son portion of the conversation out of the way, we're going to have a very different kind of talk. Consider it a father to the boy who broke my daughter's heart kind of talk."

Edward stared at me wide eyed. He obviously got the message. "Carlisle, I-"

"I am talking right now, you're not!" I interrupted. "You left Bella in the woods alone after telling her that she was nothing more than a distraction to you."

"I was trying to protect her. Our world was dangerous to her. We nearly got her killed more than once. I just thought it would be better if we left so that she could get back to a normal life. I wanted her to be safe," Edward explained.

I was unmoved by his explanation. "Do you hear yourself? What _you_ wanted. What about what she wanted? What right did you have to make that decision?"

"You agreed with me," Edward pointed out.

I glared at him. "I did not agree with you. I succumbed to your wishes against my better judgment because you played on my love for her. And don't pretend you didn't because I know better. Don't get me wrong, I am as responsible for my choices as you are for yours, but don't you dare try to make what you did okay by trying to turn it all around on me.

Edward nodded and bowed his head shamefully.

"You nearly destroyed her, Edward. You left her in the woods. After running after you and failing to find you, she collapsed to the ground in pure agony. If it weren't for one of the wolves, who knows what would've happened to her," I said. I was seething just thinking about the pain my little girl had gone through, not just because of Edward but because of the rest of us as well.

"I didn't know that would happen. I thought she'd just go home and try to get over me. I figured her memories of me would fade with time and that she'd move on," Edward said.

"Well, they didn't. I won't go into detail because it's not my story to tell, but you nearly destroyed her as much as you did yourself. I will not allow that to happen again. Do you understand me? I'm not just your father anymore, Edward, I'm hers as well. And I will not let her get hurt again.

"I won't hurt her again, I swear. I never meant to hurt her in the first place. All I wanted was to keep her safe," Edward said.

"That's not your job, it's mine, and I will do it. I will protect my daughter, even if means protecting her from you," I informed him.

"What does that mean?" Edward asked, sounding very nervous. He was obviously afraid that I was going to forbid him from seeing her.

I was actually tempted to forbid any kind of relationship between the two of them. I didn't want a repeat of the past six months for my daughter. However, I knew deep down that Edward's heart was in the right place, even if his brain wasn't. I just had to impress upon him the importance of not making such a serious mistake ever again. "It means that I will be watching you. If Bella decides to give you another chance, you will treat her with nothing but respect. That means making decisions with her instead of making them for her. It means being honest with her. If you fail to do so, son or no son, I will personally see to it that you never are with her in that fashion again. As you are a member of this family, I can't complete keep you from seeing her, but I will make sure that you are never left alone with her. Do you understand me?"

"Yes sir," Edward responded.

"Good. You have one hour to prepare yourself. In one hour, I will be calling a family meeting. I have had my say, now everyone else will have theirs."

Edward started to object, but I placed my hand up to stop him. "You have caused every member of this family heartache. I think it's only fair that they all get the chance to voice that heartache. Now, go. I need to be alone for a while."

Edward immediately got up from his chair and headed for the door.

"Edward," I called out to him. I waited for him to turn back to me before saying, "I'm glad you're home, son. I love you."

"I love you too. I'm really, really sorry," he said, his voice filled with remorse.

I nodded and then motioned for him to go.


	12. Chapter 12

**Bella's POV**

I laid on my bed staring at the ceiling as I tried to figure everything out in my head. I still couldn't believe everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. Carlisle was my father. He wasn't just the guy I thought of as a father. He was my flesh and blood father. Well, as flesh and blood as a vampire could get.

It wasn't really that big of a deal for me to accept Carlisle as my father. I'd already seen him that way. I had since pretty much right after Edward and I got together. The biggest problem I was having was understanding how Carlisle could accept me.

While it was true that I was his daughter, it wasn't exactly by choice. He didn't agree to be with my mother. He didn't even know he was until Edward told him in Volterra. He was tricked into being with her. Tricked by a woman who had nearly destroyed his family.

I felt sick just thinking about who my biological mother was and what she had done. I was related to a person that was capable of destroying families. Someone who was willing to deceive someone as good as Jasper into doing something he would later hate himself for.

I didn't know how I would face Jasper or Alice again. My mother had tried to destroy them and had nearly destroyed them. They would hate me for that, and with good reason. I just knew that it would kill me to see that kind of look in their eyes.

I was soon pulled from my thoughts when I heard a knock on the door. "Come in." I really didn't want to see anyone, but I didn't want to be rude either.

The door opened a second later, revealing Carlisle. "Hey. Listen, I know you probably want to be alone, but I need you to come downstairs for a family meeting."

"Do I have to? Can't you just do it without me and tell me about it later?" I asked pleadingly. I didn't want to be around anyone right now, especially Alice and Jasper. I wasn't ready to face them.

Carlisle sighed and walked further into the room. "Bella, I know you're upset, but this meeting is necessary for us all to move forward from the things Edward has done. I believe you have some things you'd like to say to him too. Am I right?"

I nodded. There were things I wanted to say to Edward. Things I'd been waiting six months to say. But I wasn't sure I wanted to say them now. I wasn't sure I had the strength to say them now. I was afraid that I would start and I would end up either falling apart or physically attacking him.

Sensing my conflict, Carlisle came over and sat next to me. "What is it, Sweetheart?"

"I'm not sure I'm ready to confront Edward. I'm afraid I'll lose it on him," I said.

"Well, if that happens, it'll be nothing less than he deserves. That's the purpose of this meeting. I want Edward to understand the pain he has caused this family. You most of all. I also want to impress upon the entire family the importance of not making the same mistakes. For that, I need you to be there," Carlisle said.

"A...are you going to tell everyone about me at the meeting?" I asked nervously.

"Not unless you want me to. I won't say anything until you're ready for me to," Carlisle promised.

I breathed a sigh of relief. At least I didn't have to worry about that tonight. "Okay."

"Alright, let's go," Carlisle said before standing up and helping me up as well. He then led me downstairs and into the living room where everyone else was already waiting.

"So the resident pixie had a vision about you calling a family meeting," Emmett said to Carlisle.

"Yes. Everyone, sit down," Carlisle said before grabbing a nearby chair and placing it in the center of the room. "Edward, sit here please."

Edward sat down where he was directed and the rest of us sat down on the very large couch in the room. Jasper and Alice sat together of course as did Emmett and Rose. I sat on the end next to Emmett. Carlisle and Esme both stood next to all of us.

"Alright, this is what is going to happen. I want you all to talk to Edward and tell him how you feel about the way he's acted over the last several months. Edward, you will listen quietly until everyone has finished. Once they are done, you may say something if you wish. Is that understood?" Carlisle asked.

Edward nodded.

"Rosalie, why don't you go first?" Carlisle suggested.

Rosalie turned to Edward. "Brother, I love you, but you're an idiot. Leaving Forks was one thing. I understood why you wanted to do that. But to leave us all with no word for six months and then go try and kill yourself without any regard for any of us..." She trailed off as her temper began to rise. "Look, I know I don't act like it much, but you do mean something to me. You're my brother. I love you. The idea of you not being around for me to antagonize scares the hell out of me. I don't normally beg for anything, but I'm begging you now. Please don't ever do anything like this again. None of us could take it. That's all I have to say."

"Emmett?" Carlisle prompted.

Emmett sucked in a breath. He looked angry. "You pissed me off, Edward. Big time. You weren't the only person in this room who loved Bella. We all did. From the moment you brought her into our lives, she became one of us. Vampire or not, she was a part of us. When you asked us to leave, it was like you were asking us to rip off one of our limbs. And I realize that it's partly our fault for going, but I felt like I had to choose between my brother and my sister. We all felt like that, and most of us were prepared to say no until you pulled out the protection card. You replayed everything that happened with Jasper in order to manipulate us into leaving."

Emmett stopped for a minute, obviously trying to control his anger. "So we went. We weren't there for Bella when she needed us the most. We weren't there when something foreign even to us started happening. She had to come find us. And when she did find us, she wasn't sure we even wanted her, because of you. You didn't just destroy yourself in her eyes, you destroyed us too. It's going to take a long time for me to forgive you and even longer for me to trust you."

Alice went next. "You've always been my favorite brother. The one, aside from Jasper and the folks, that I trusted above all others. Maybe that's why I decided to listen to you when you asked us to leave Forks without so much as saying goodbye to Bella. I trusted you to know what was best. But you didn't. All you cared about was what you wanted."

Edward opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted by Carlisle. "Edward," he said in a warning tone.

Edward immediately clamped his mouth shut.

"You were so selfish when you made us leave. You may have thought you were doing it for Bella, but you were doing it for you. You did it because you didn't know how to deal with what happened at the house the day of her party or her wanting to be changed. And while I understand that fear on some level, you had no right to make that choice. You were selfish, pure and simple. And then you were selfish again when you decided to kill yourself. Do you have any idea what it was like to see that? I actually watched you _die_ in my vision. It was worst thing I've ever seen. You have no idea how horrible I was," Alice said, her voice filled with emotion. If she were capable of crying, she would be.

Jasper placed his arm around her to comfort her. He then turned to Edward. "I'm not sure if I have the right to judge you, Edward. It is my fault that all this happened in the first place."

"Jasper-" I started.

"Bella, I'm going to ask you to remain quiet while Jasper speaks please. If you wish to speak to him after we're done here, that's fine, but right now he needs to have his say," Carlisle told me in kind but firm voice.

I nodded.

"No matter how much Bella doesn't want to blame me, I am responsible. I didn't mean to attack her, but I did, and I know you haven't forgiven me for that. I don't blame you. If you'd attacked Alice, I wouldn't soon forgive you either. However, there was a better option than breaking Bella's heart and manipulating us all into leaving. You didn't just hurt Bella that night, though that was certainly bad enough. You hurt all of us. Alice was miserable for months. Pretty much until the moment Bella walked through the front door. You did that to her. I can't easily forgive you for that. Just as you can't easily forgive me," Jasper said. He was calm the entire time, but his voice was filled with anger and betrayal.

There was a long pause, telling me that it was my turn to speak. I took a deep breath and willed myself to do this without completely falling apart. "I don't want you. You're not good for me. Those are the things you told me before you left me alone in the woods. Do you have any idea what my life was like after that? You didn't just take yourself away from me, Edward, you took everyone else away too. You took my father away."

I knew I was getting some confused looks from the rest of the Cullen 'kids', but I was too focused on the pain Edward caused me to care. "And yeah, I know you didn't know, but that doesn't matter. You knew how I felt about him, about all of you. Yet, you were still able to look me in the eye and lie to me like that. You say you did it because you didn't want me to get hurt? No one could've hurt me worse than you did."

Edward looked down at his hands, which were resting in his lap.

"Look at me, Edward. I think the least you owe me is to look me in the eyes," I said.

Edward slowly picked his head up and looked at me. His face was filled with guilt and remorse.

A part of me wanted to go over to Edward and embrace him, tell him that everything was okay. But wasn't okay. It was nowhere near okay. Edward had left me wanting to die and I needed him to know that. "I went after you that day. Did you know that? I ran after you screaming your name. After I realized that there was no way I could catch up to you, I collapsed to the ground. I was there for hours. Then finally Sam Uley found me and brought me home. I was a zombie after that. I wouldn't eat, I wouldn't talk to anyone. I had constant nightmares which had me waking up screaming. My only relief became putting myself at risk just to see your face in my head."

Edward's eyes widened in horror and he looked like he was about to say something, but one look from Carlisle shut him up.

"I got into a car with a bunch of guys whom I knew were dangerous. I rode this motorcycle that Jacob Black helped me build and crashed it. All just to see a glimpse of you. I became an adrenaline junkie. I would probably still be trying to find dangerous ways to see your face if I hadn't started changing," I said as I began to cry.

"I came here after finding out I was turning into a vampire. I tracked the family's scents here. You know I was afraid that they wouldn't want me here? I thought you they shared the same opinion that you told me you had. But they didn't. They took me in with open arms. Carlisle told me how you'd lied to me. I was so furious with you. It was a good thing you weren't here then because I might have torn you apart. You ripped me apart, Edward," I said sobbing.

Carlisle came over and sat next to me before taking me into his arms. I gladly accepted the comfort of my father.

After a few minutes, I pulled up. "I'm okay, and I'm done."

"Do you have anything you'd like to say, Edward?" Carlisle asked.

Edward nodded. "You're all right about me. What I did was incredibly selfish and stupid. I never meant to hurt anyone. I hope you all know that. But I also know that doesn't change the fact that I did hurt all of you. Jasper, I do forgive you. I never meant for you to think I didn't. Yes, I was angry at first, but I know you didn't mean to hurt Bella. I know you'd never do that on purpose. And I'm sorry to both you and Alice that I hurt her. I didn't mean to."

Edward then turned to me. "Bella, you're the person I least wanted to hurt and the one I hurt the most. I'm so deeply, deeply sorry. I know that probably doesn't mean much to you right now, but I am. All I wanted was to keep you safe. I figured your memories would fade, you'd forget me, and move one. I was wrong. I was wrong to do everything I did. I made a choice for you that wasn't mine to make. I just hope you can forgive me one day. I hope you all can."

"Don't expect it anytime soon," I said. I wasn't sure I could forgive Edward. I wanted to, but it was just so hard. He'd hurt me a lot. It was going to be a long time before I even considered forgiving him.

"I understand," he said.

There was a small pause before Carlisle stood up and addressed us. "Alright, everyone, listen up. Nothing like this will ever be allowed to happen again. You will no longer be allowed to do whatever you wish without consequences. You will not put yourselves in danger, you will not lie to your mother or me, and you will not disobey us. Edward has been severely punished for all those things, and the rest of you will be as well if you break any of these rules. Have I made myself clear?"

We all nodded, though some, particularly Rosalie, looked unhappy about it.

"Alright, that's all for tonight," Carlisle said.

"Wait," I called out to them as they started to get up. "There's something you all need to know."

"Bella, are you sure?" Carlisle asked me.

"No, but if we wait until I am, I'll never do this. They deserve to know. I won't be like her. I won't deceive them," I said firmly. I was really scared to do this, but I owed it to them. They deserved to know and they deserved to know now.

"Bella, what are you talking about?" Alice asked.

I took a deep breath as I prepared to rip open their lives. I just hoped that they understood and that they didn't hate me after hearing the truth.


	13. Chapter 13

**Jasper's POV**

I eyed Bella with concern as she prepared to tell us whatever it was she had to tell us. Normally I couldn't feel anything coming off of Bella because of her shield, but that had fallen sometime during her confrontation with Edward. I'd felt her pain now, just as I felt her guilt and fear now.

I didn't know what exactly Bella was feeling guilty for, but I did know that it was strong and it was directed towards me and somewhat at Alice. The fear she was directed to us as well. She didn't seem to be afraid _of_ me, more like how we were going to react to what she was going to say.

"Bella, would you prefer to go on another hunt with Esme while I explain everything?" Carlisle asked. He obviously knew, as did Esme and Edward. The rest of us were in the dark.

Bella shook her head. "No. That's the coward's way out. I won't do that. Besides, if they feel the need to lash out at me, that's their right."

"No, it's not, but I don't think that's going to happen. I just know how upsetting this is for you," Carlisle said.

"I can do this. I have to do this," Bella said. It sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than the rest of us.

"Bella, whatever it is, you can tell us. I'm sure it's not as bad as you think," Alice said.

I learned forward a little and looked at Bella. "Did you slip when you were in Italy or something? Is that why you're so upset? Because if you did, it's okay. It happens to all of us. Lord knows it's happened to me more often than I care to admit."

"No, it's not that. It was hard, but I managed to control my bloodlust," Bella said.

"Will you just tell us already?" Rosalie asked exasperatedly.

"Babe," Emmett chastised.

Bella looked upset, so Carlisle placed an arm around her shoulders. "It's okay, sweetheart. Take your time. If you'd like I can start," he said.

Bella shook her head at him before turning to us. "You know, ever since I met you all, I've considered you all family. Even you, Rosalie."

"We consider you family too, Bella. As far as I'm concerned you are my sister," Alice said.

"Thank you. I'm glad to hear it. I just hope that what I'm about to tell you doesn't change that," Bella said.

"Never!" Emmett said vehemently.

I had to agree with Emmett. I wasn't sure what was up with Bella, but I did know that there was nothing that could change how we felt about her. She was family and family loved each other unconditionally.

"Bella, I don't understand. How could you possibly think our feelings for you could change?" Alice asked.

"Because there are things you don't know about me. Who I am. Where I come from," Bella said.

"None of which are your fault, honey," Esme said.

"Tell us what happened, Bella? Let us decide how we feel," I told her. It was obvious that we weren't going to be able to elude her fears right now, so it was best to just get it over with so we could convince her better.

Bella took a deep breath. "Okay, here it goes. You all know that things have been weird. What with me turning me into a vampire for now explicit reason. Well, the good news is that that question has been answered.

"Wait, so you know how you turned?" Emmett asked.

"Well, I didn't really turn. I was born this way," Bella told us.

We were all shocked. Bella's revelation seemed impossible. No one could be born a vampire. "How is this possible?"

"We're not completely certain on that. I'm not sure how it's possible, but Bella's parents were both vampires," Carlisle said.

I immediately felt a surge of jealously coming from Rosalie. It was no secret that she had always longed for a child, so the idea of another vampire having one really irritated her.

"No, that's not true. Vampires can't have children," Rosalie said.

"Rosie, calm down," Emmett tried.

"No, I'm not going to calm down. You guys are selling us a load of goods. If this were possible, don't you think it would've happened to other vampires before?" Rose asked. The tone in her voice made it clear that by 'other', she meant herself.

"Rosalie, we don't know how this happened, but I think it was merely a onetime thing. I don't want you to get your hopes up for it happening again," Carlisle said.

"How do you even know this?" Rosalie asked.

"We found out in Italy. The head of the Volturi, Aro, told us," Bella said.

"Wait a second. Charlie and Renee aren't vampires," Alice said.

"No, they're not. According to Aro, I'm adopted," Bella said.

"How would he know?" Emmett asked.

"Apparently he's known since I was born. He's the one that put me up for adoption in the first place," Bella explained.

"Wait, so Aro's your father. That sucks," Emmett said.

"No. Aro's not my father," she said. She sounded like she wanted to say more but was having a hard time with it. Finally she spoke again. "Carlisle is."

Once again, we all gasped in shock. That was the last thing any of us had expected to here. Though when I thought about it, Bella was a lot like Carlisle. She had his compassion and his selflessness, not to mention his capacity to forgive.

"That's not possible. We would've known," Alice said.

"I agree, this doesn't make sense. We've all lived together for many, many years. If Esme were ever pregnant, we'd know," I said.

"No, it's not like that. Esme isn't my mother. Well, not biologically anyway," Bella said, indicating that she did see Esme as her mother.

"No, no way! Carlisle would _never_ cheat on Esme!" Rosalie said scathingly.

"It's not that simple, sweetie. He didn't know he'd done it," Esme said.

"Uh, I don't mean any disrespect here, but how could he not know he'd been with someone else?" Alice asked. It was a reasonable question. It wasn't every day that something like this happened.

Bella looked at Carlisle pleadingly. It was clear that no matter how determined she'd been earlier, she could no longer go on.

Carlisle squeezed her shoulders and looked up at the rest of us. "It was an illusion. I thought I was with your mother."

_'An illusion?' _I thought to myself. I suddenly began to feel sick. I knew only one person capable of doing such a thing. Only one person twisted enough to do something like that. It was the same person who had nearly destroyed me so many years ago. "Melinda," Whispered.

Bella did everything in her power to avoid my gaze.

Everything suddenly clicked. I now understood why I kept getting waves of guilt off of Bella. She was blaming herself for what her mother did and she was afraid we would as well.

"Whoa, Melinda? That bitch is her mother?" Rosalie asked angrily.

"Rosalie," Carlisle warned.

She ignored him. "God, I can't believe this! After all these years that _woman_ comes back to haunt us_?"_

"Shut up, Rose!" Edward seethed.

Bella looked like she was about to have a total meltdown. Her emotions were all over the place. So much so that I could barely get a clear read on them.

Rose stood up and glared dangerously at Bella. "Did she send you here? Did that bitch send you after us?"

"No, of course not. I've never even met her," Bella cried.

"Yeah right. You really expect us to believe that it was just a coincidence that you pushed your way into our lives."

"Enough!" Carlisle snarled. He stood up and took Rose by the arm. "You and I are going to have a talk in my office," he said before dragging her away.

Everyone was really quite for a few minutes after that, with the exception of Bella's sobs. She was clearly very upset. Her guilt was now much, much worse and her pain at being rejected by Rosalie was even bigger. It was all so powerful that it was almost too much for me to bear.

I stood up from my spot on the couch and went over to Bell, who was being comforted by Emmett and Esme. I stopped in front of her and knelt down. "Bella, please look at me."

Bella shook her head vigorously as she leaned into Emmett's strong arms. "I can't."

I sighed and focused my power on taking her pain away. I replaced her guilt and pain with my feelings for her at the moment. Happiness and love."

Bella slowly pulled away from Emmett and looked at me surprised. "W...why did you do that?"

"Because you're my sister and I want to help you. You gotta let it go, Bella. It's not your burden to bear."

"Y...you don't hate me?" Bella asked with a small amount of hope in her voice.

I smiled. "Of course not. You're my sister. I could never hate my own sister."

"But my mother-"

"She's not your mother!" I said firmly. I realized that Melinda gave birth to Bella, but there was no way she could be classified as her mother. She didn't even know Bella, and for that I was eternally grateful. There was no telling what that _thing_ would do to someone as good and pure as my sister. "Renee was your mother, Bella. Esme is now. That woman is nothing but a predator that you have the bad luck of being genetically connected to."

"She hurt you," Bella stated.

"Yeah. _She _did," I emphasized. I wanted to make it very clear that I did not hold Bella responsible for Melinda's actions. How could I? Bella hadn't even been conceived when we met Melinda. "If I were a fan of the old saying, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, I would be screwed. We aren't responsible for the sins of our parents."

Alice soon came over and squished between Emmett and Bella. She placed an arm around her. "Jazz is right, Bella. You're our family. You were even before this came out. The fact that that woman is your biological mother is just bad luck. It doesn't matter to us."

"Well, it seems to matter to Rosalie," Bella said.

"A lot of what Rose just said stems from jealousy. She's always wanted a child. It pisses her off that someone else was able and she wasn't," Emmett said.

"He's right. I got waves of jealousy off her," I told her. I decided not to mention the fact that part of that jealousy was due to the fact that Carlisle was her biological father. She felt like Carlisle was going to favor Bella over her, over all of us. It wasn't true, but it was how she felt.

"Rose didn't believe anything that she said. She's just mad. It was Rose being Rose," Edward added.

Bella looked at me with guilt and sympathy. "I'm sorry."

I took her hands and pulled her up. I then captured her in a tight embrace. "Don't be. You're not the one who should be sorry."

Bella pulled away after a minute. "Thank you. All of you. I can't tell you how lucky I feel to be a part of this family."

Esme smiled. "We're the lucky ones.

Bella wiped her eyes. "Um, I think I need to be alone for a while. I think this all took a lot out of me."

"Of course. Why don't you go upstairs and rest?" Esme suggested.

Bella nodded and immediately started out of the room.


	14. Chapter 14

**Rosalie's POV**

Carlisle practically dragged me into his office and deposited me into the chair in front of his desk. He was angrier than I'd ever seen him before. I had definitely crossed a line with him.

I regretted my words to Bella the second they were out of my mouth. I didn't mean a word of it. I knew Bella hadn't tracked us down with the intention of infiltrating our family. I only said that because I was angry and jealous. I wanted to take it out on someone and Bella was the best person for that.

I'd always been jealous of Bella. At first I was jealous of her humanity. Now I was jealous of the fact that she existed. She was something I'd never have. She was the only vampire child to ever be created and she'd been created from that bitch, Melinda.

It just wasn't fair. Why did that vile creature get to be a mother when I didn't? I was twice the woman she could even hope to be. I would never even think of hurting people the way she did. So why couldn't I be blessed with a child instead?

I also resented Bella for being Carlisle's biological child. She was deeply connected to my father. She had a bond with him that I could never have, despite the fact that he'd known me decades longer than her. If he had to, Carlisle would always choose her over the rest of us. The fact that he had started acting so parental just after finding out who she was proved that.

Carlisle took a couple of deep breaths and sat down across from me at his desk. "Look at me, Rosalie."

I immediately met his eyes, which were filled with anger and disappointment.

"Would you care to explain yourself?" Carlisle asked.

I shrugged my shoulders and remained quiet. I was in no big hurry to explain my actions. Carlisle didn't need to know how petty and jealous I was feeling.

"You know, I didn't think I had to make this a rule, but apparently I do. You don't cause members of this family intentional pain. Is that understood?" Carlisle asked sternly.

"Her mother caused us pain. She nearly destroyed Jasper and she basically raped you," I told him.

"_She _did, not Bella. We do not blame the actions of other people on their children in this family," Carlisle said.

"Why does everyone keep saying that this _girl_ is family? First you called her family because of Edward and now because that evil bitch-"

"Rosalie, you will watch your language. You know how I feel about those kinds of words. You will not use them in my presence," He said sternly. "Now let me make this perfectly clear to you. I do not care how Bella came into this world. She's here and I love her. Furthermore, Bella didn't ask for this. She didn't ask to be an anomaly among even our kind. She didn't ask to have a mother capable of such cruelty. It's tearing her apart inside and I'm not going to let you make it worse."

I began to get very angry. I hated it when everyone made perfect Bella the victim. It just wasn't fair. "So we're all just supposed ignore our own feelings to make her feel better."

Carlisle sighed. "Rosalie, like me in the eye right now and tell me that you meant a word that you said downstairs."

I looked at him and opened my mouth to do just that, but promptly shut it. I couldn't tell him that. It would be a lie and he would see right through. All it would do was piss him off even more.

"That's what I thought. If I believed that you meant even one more of what you said to Bella, we would be having a very different conversation right now, but I know you didn't mean it. You don't think that Bella was maneuvered into this family by Melinda. You said all that out of petty jealousy! You were trying to hurt Bella, and that is something that I will _not_ allow!" Carlisle said in a low voice.

"Fine, whatever!" I said before angrily standing up and heading for the door.

"Rosalie Hale, you get back here right now, we're not nearly finished!" Carlisle ordered loudly.

The cold, hard voice my father took with me had me back in my seat in seconds. I'd never heard him speak in that tone before, but I knew that would be a monumental mistake to ignore it.

"This childish attitude of yours is going to stop now! I've put up with it for far too long. From now on, you are going to treat everyone in this family with the respect they deserve and that includes Bella. I will no longer hear of you making off handed comments to her like you have in the past," Carlisle informed me.

"So suddenly now that Bella is your real daughter, you care about my attitude?" I asked. He'd ignited another spark of jealousy from me. It was obvious to me that he was favoring Bella and would continue to do so. It just wasn't fair. I'd been around a lot longer than she had.

"Don't make this about Bella, Rosalie. Your attitude has always irked me. I should've corrected a long time ago. That's my fault for believing you were capable of correcting your own mistakes. Here me now, Rosalie. I am _done_ allowing you to speak to everyone however you please, just as I am done allowing Edward to disregard this family without consequences. It is obvious to me now that while you are all much older than you look, you have never matured past your physical age. From now on, your actions and words will have consequences," Carlisle told me.

"And what about Bella? Does she have these same consequences when she screws up?" I asked bitterly.

Carlisle stared at me for a minute before realization reached his face. "Is that what this is about? You think I love Bella more than the rest of you?"

"Don't you?"

Carlisle leaned forward in his chair and looked me directly in the eye. "Rosalie, my feelings for Bella are unchanged from the way I felt about her before the truth came out. I love her just as much as I did before. And that is neither more nor less than I love the rest of you. I will admit that I am a bit more protective of her right now, but that is because she is going through a difficult time right now. So in answer to your question, yes. If Bella messes up, she will face the consequences."

"So you're going to punish Bella for going to Volterra behind your back?" I asked.

"That's between me and her. I will not discuss it with you anymore than I'd discuss this conversation with her," Carlisle said sternly. "Now as for you, I'm going to let you off with a warning and an insistence that you apologize to Bella sincerely. _But _do not make me regret it. The only reason I am letting you off so easily is because I know how this is all affecting you. I will not be so lenient if anything like this ever happens again. Do we understand each other?" he asked.

I nodded.

"Good. Now you may go. I expect you to apologize to Bella tomorrow morning, in front of everyone."

I nodded again and headed for the door.


	15. Chapter 15

**Carlisle's POV**

After finishing up with Rosalie, I decided to go check on Bella. I wanted to see how she was fairing after the day she'd had.

I walked over to Bella's room and peeked inside. She was asleep in bed. I smiled and immediately closed the door before going to my own bedroom. I found Esme on the bed. "Hey. I'm assuming everything went alright after I left."

"Yeah. Bella was quite upset after what Rose said, but I think she's okay now. Jasper helped a lot. Not just with his gift either. He was very understanding. They all were, but I think it was Jasper's absolution that did the most good," Esme explained.

"She shouldn't have needed absolution," I said sadly. It really bothered me how much Bella blamed herself for the actions of her birth mother. It wasn't Bella's responsibility to take on the guilt of others. No matter who that person was or how they were connected to her. I only wished she could see that.

"I agree, but she feels she does, especially from Jasper. God, Carlisle... She feels as guilty as if she'd done it to him herself. It was heartbreaking. But hopefully Jasper's words will help convince her that she's wrong. He was amazing. They all were. They rallied around her and made it perfectly clear that they didn't care who her mother was. I had never been more proud of them in that moment," Esme said.

I beamed. I too was quite proud. I had expected nothing less, but I was glad to be proven right. I just hoped it helped Bella in the long run.

"How did things go with Rose?" Esme asked me.

I sighed and sat next to her on the bed. "Well, I made it clear that her snide attitude would no longer be tolerated. I told her that if it happens again, she will be punished. To be honest though, I'm more worried about her reasons behind her behavior tonight than the behavior itself."

"Meaning?"

"Rosalie is jealous of Bella," I said.

"Yeah, she always has been," Esme said.

"Yes, but it's not just about her wanting what Bella has or being envious of her existence. She's jealous that Bella is my biological child. She thinks I love Bella more than her," I said. That fact was really stressing me. I was afraid that if Rosalie kept thinking that, it would cause major problems for all of us. I didn't want to see my children at war with each other.

Esme glanced at me like she wanted to say something, but was debating on it.

"Do you agree with her?" I asked.

"Carlisle, I know you love all our children equally," Esme started.

"But?" I asked. I could almost hear the word off the tip of her tongue.

"_But_ I do think that Rosalie has good reason to think otherwise. You have been favoring Bella lately," Esme said.

"No, I haven't," I denied.

"You have, honey. Maybe not intentionally, but you have. You've been tiptoeing around her since she got here and even more so since you got back from Italy," Esme said.

"I have?" I asked with uncertainty. I hadn't even realized I'd been doing it. It certainly wasn't my intention to treat her any different than the others.

"I don't think you're doing it on purpose. At first I think it was because you felt guilty for us all leaving. I think you were going out of your way to prove to her that you thought of her as family and that we weren't going to leave again. Now I think it's partially because you know how hard everything is for her right now and partially because you're afraid that she'll one day decide to leave," Esme explained.

I wanted to argue with her logic, but I couldn't. When I really thought about it, I realized that my wife was right. I had been favoring Bella. I'd been giving her most of my attention lately. But in my defense, I felt I had to. Not because she was mine biologically but because I felt she needed my attention the most right now. "Okay, I see your point, but is it really so wrong? I'm just trying to make things easier for her. She's been through hell these last few months, part of which is my fault."

"I understand that. I know how worried you are about her. I am too. I know all you want is for her to get through this okay, but I think you're going about it the wrong way. Bella needs to feel like she's a real part of this family. That means treating her the same as everyone else in this house. Now you punished Edward right after you got him back here," Esme reminded me.

"Edward needed to be punished. He needed to be taken to task for the things he has done," I said firmly. I was quite surprised that Esme would argue that fact. She had been just as livid as I was with Edward.

"I agree with you. Edward deserved punishment, just as Rosalie deserved chastisement. It's about damn time that our children learn they can't just disregard us and get away with it. But Bella should be included in that. Have you spoken to her about going to Italy?"

I cringed as I shook my head. Mostly because I knew I should speak to Bella about it, but I was afraid to. She was going through a lot right now and I didn't want to make it worse. Also, I was a bit worried about what would happen because I had never had to punish Bella or even admonish her before. That had been Charlie's job in the past. I had no idea how she'd react to it. Would I be pushing her away by doing it? With the others it was different. While I'd never really punished them in the past, they'd all been with me for a long time and recognized my authority. I wasn't so sure Bella would.

"Don't you think you should? She lied to us, Carlisle, not to mention putting her existence on the line. And yes, it turned out okay and it led to you both finding out the wonderful truth of her being your daughter, but it could've easily gone another way," Esme said.

"I know, but she's been through so much in the last couple of days. She still blames herself for what Melinda did," I told her.

"And you're afraid that if you take a hard line with her on this issue that she'll take it the wrong way and think that you're punishing her for who her mother is," Esme guessed.

I nodded. It was uncanny how she did it, but Esme always seemed to sum up exactly what I was thinking. It was hard to believe Edward was the one that read minds sometimes.

"I don't think that's going to happen. In fact, I think the results will be positive. It's like I said, Bella needs to feel like she's really a part of this family. She needs to be treated the same, for better or worse. In the end, I think it'll help her feel more secure in her place here, and it will definitely help Rose and the others feel that she really is treated equally to them," she said.

I nodded my head. I knew she was right. Bella was a part of this family and needed to be treated equally to the others. In fact, this wouldn't even be a question if what happened at the Volturi hadn't happened. When I arrived in Volterra and heard about Bella disobeying me, I had had every intention of punishing her. The only reason I hadn't was because things had become complicated and we'd both been overwhelmed by the news.

Now though, it was time to take action. I told my children that if they screwed up, they would be punished. No matter how much I didn't want to, I had to stay true to my word. I needed to correct Bella's mistakes just as I had Edward's and Rosalie's.


	16. Chapter 16

**Bella's POV**

I woke up the next morning feeling much better. Things were still complicated and I wondered how things would progress with Carlisle, but at least now I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that most of my family would be there for me. They had proved that to me last night. Every single one of them, with the exception of Rosalie, had reassured me of their feelings.

After getting up, I quickly got dressed and headed downstairs. I found everyone, with the exception of Esme and Carlisle sitting downstairs.

Emmett immediately came over and hugged me. "Hey, sis. How you doing today?"

"I'm good. I mean, I still have some things to work out, but I'll be alright," I assured him.

Jasper and Alice approached me as well. Edward looked like he wanted to do the same, but decided against it, something I was grateful for. It seemed like he was finally trying to respect my wishes and was giving me the space I needed.

"Are you sure you're okay, Bella?" Jasper asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Jasper," I assured him.

"No more blaming yourself?" Jasper asked.

I hesitated in answering. I thought about lying, but I knew my emotions would betray me to him. "I'm trying."

Jasper nodded. "I guess that's all I can ask. I really hope you'll let it go soon. It's not your fault."

"Thank you," I said. I then glanced over at Rosalie, who was glaring at me in disdain. I cringed, but I couldn't really blame her. After the things my biological mother had done, I wouldn't have been able to blame any of them if they hated me.

Soon, I heard footsteps on the stairs. Seconds later, Carlisle entered the room.

"Bella, good, you're up. Did you sleep well?" he asked.

"Yeah, I slept fine. Thanks," I said.

Carlisle turned to Rosalie. "Rosalie, I believe you have something to say to Bella."

I turned to Rose. Her expression was the same as she said, "Sorry."

"Not good enough. Stand up and say it like you mean it," Carlisle ordered.

"Carlisle-" Rosalie started to protest.

"Now! Or you can go to your room until you do," Carlisle interrupted.

"Carlisle, it's okay," I said. I didn't need Rosalie to apologize. I knew it would be fake, and honestly, I didn't blame her for resenting me.

"No, it's not. Now, Rosalie," he instructed impatiently.

Rosalie sighed before standing up. "I'm sorry, Bella. I shouldn't have said what I did last night."

"It's okay," I said.

"No, it's not. Don't forgive her so easily. She's not even really sorry," Edward said as he sent a death glare towards Rosalie.

"Edward, stop. Just let it go. I just want to move on," I said.

"A fine idea. Now, Bella, I need to speak with you. Please accompany me to my office," Carlisle said before leaving the room, obviously expecting me to follow.

I immediately began to feel uneasy. I didn't know what it was, but something told me this wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation. "Why do I get the feeling that this is the last walk before my execution?"

"Maybe because the last two people who went into that office got their asses handed to them," Emmett said.

"Emmett!" Alice admonished.

"But I'm sure that that won't happen with you," Emmett quickly added.

"Edward?" I asked giving him a pointed look. I wanted to know if he got anything from Carlisle's thoughts.

Edward shook his head sadly. "He was blocking me."

I gulped. That did not ease my nervousness one bit. If anything it made it worse. I couldn't think of any good reason for Carlisle to block Edward from his mind.

"Bella, please do not make me come back down there and get you!" Carlisle yelled from upstairs.

"It'll be okay, Love. It's not like you did anything, right?" Edward asked.

"Right," I said unconvincingly. I then took a deep breath and walked out of the room and up the stairs.

I entered Carlisle's office and found him sitting behind his desk. "Please shut the door and come sit down," he requested. It sounded like more of an order though.

I walked further in and closed the door behind me before approaching Carlisle's desk. "Is something wrong?"

"Sit down," he said again.

I took a deep breath and did as I was told. "Carlisle, did I do something wrong?"

"You tell me," Carlisle said.

I cringed. It was obvious by that statement that I had done something wrong. I wished he would just tell me. I never understood why parents would make you explain what you thought you did wrong. The very few times that Charlie and Renee acted parental, they did the same thing. "I...I don't know. I don't think I did anything."

"Do you not recall our conversation before we all left for Volterra?"

_'Oh, that,' _I thought to myself. I'd forgotten about that for a while. I really should've known that would come back to bite me. Carlisle had looked so angry when He found me at the Volturi. I'd known then that he had planned to lecture me. But it had all been forgotten with Aro's revelation. "Carlisle, I-"

Carlisle held up his hand to stop me. "Before we get into all that, there's something else I want to address. I realize that this relationship between us is very new. I know that you still consider Charlie to be your father and I want you to know that I will never ever try to replace him. Now that being said, I am your father too and it is my job to correct you when you make a mistake."

"Can I say something before you go on?" I asked.

Carlisle nodded.

"I love Charlie and I always will, but for a long time now, every time I thought of my father, I thought of you. There are just things that you always did that I would never expect Charlie to do. With Charlie, It was more like I was the parent, Renee too. But when I was with you, I could finally be the kid in the relationship. I considered you a father long before I found out that was what you were to me. That's why it hurt so much when you left," I said.

"I can't tell you enough how sorry I am for that. I never meant to hurt you, but as I told Edward recently, intentions don't really matter. I will spend the rest of eternity trying to make up for how I hurt you. I just hope you can forgive me," Carlisle said. The regret and sorrow was obvious in his voice

"I've already forgiven you, Carlisle. I just wanted you to know how I felt," I told him.

"I'm glad. I can't tell you enough how happy I am to hear how you consider me. It brings me great joy to know that you already considered me your father," Carlisle said.

"I don't suppose we can just leave this conversation at that," I said sheepishly.

Carlisle smiled sadly. "I'm afraid not. What kind of father would I be if I let something so serious go?"

"But it wasn't that serious. Everything turned out fine," I said.

"That, my daughter, was dumb luck, and not at all the point. You lied to me and deliberately disobeyed me. What's worse is that you knew it the entire time. You made me a promise that you never intended to keep. Didn't you?" Carlisle asked.

I looked down at my hands, finding it too tough to look him in the eye.

"I'm waiting for an answer and I would appreciate it if you looked at me while giving it to me," Carlisle said sternly.

I immediately brought my eyes back up to meet his. "Yes. I told you what you wanted to hear, but I never had any intention of following through." I felt lower than low just saying out loud. Carlisle had trusted me to keep my word and I had betrayed him.

"I thought as much. You must have known how upset I'd be when I found out," Carlisle said.

"Yes, but I was trying to save Edward. I couldn't think of much else but getting him back safe," I tried to explain.

Carlisle sighed. "Bella, I know you love Edward. I know how hard it must have been for you to know what Edward was planning and not be able to do anything, but that does not make it alright for you to disobey my instructions not once but twice."

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. "Twice? I don't understand."

"What did I tell you about going out in public while you were still a newborn?" Carlisle asked me.

Guilt immediately crossed my face. I knew what he was getting at.

"Answer me," Carlisle ordered.

"You said that it was dangerous for me to go out in public. That I could end up hurting someone, but I didn't," I pointed out.

"Again, luck and nothing more. You walked through a crowded airport and got onto a plane filled with humans. That could've easily turned into a catastrophe. Do you think you would've been able to live with yourself if you hurt someone?" Carlisle asked.

I shook my head. I definitely wouldn't have been able to live myself knowing I'd fed on a human. "No. I'm sorry. All I could think about was saving Edward. I didn't consider anything else."

"Yes, I figured as much. Now I realize that part of that is because of your newborn status, but you were in control of yourself completely when you made the choice to disregard my orders and that is not something I can let go. As unpleasant as it is going to be for the both of us, I'm going to have to punish you," he told me.

I bowed my head, knowing that I deserved it. As good as my intentions were, I had disobeyed and lied to my father. I knew even before I left the house that day that I was going to have to suffer some kind of consequences.

"Look at me please," Carlisle requested. When I looked up, he continued. "It pains me to have to do this, but I refuse to treat you any differently than any other member of this family, and I know you wouldn't want me too. Am I correct?"

I nodded. I wanted to be treated like the others. It was the only way I was going to feel like I truly belonged.

"Now normally I would ground you similar to how I have Edward, but your newborn status makes that a bit difficult. You are already unable to leave the house due to that fact. So instead, I'm going to ground you in-house for one week," Carlisle told me.

"What does that mean?" I asked. I had been grounded very few times in my life. I had definitely not been grounded in-house as Carlisle put it.

"That means that means no TV or electronics whatsoever. You will hand over all handheld devices immediately," he said.

My eyes widened at the prospect of not being able to listen to my music or watch movies with the others. "What I'm supposed to do for the next week then?"

"You can read or help Esme around the house. I'm sure she would love to spend the time with you. In any other free time, I would suggest you think about how you landed in this position and what you can do in the future to keep it from happening again," Carlisle said.

"Carlisle, please. I'm sorry-"

"This conversation is over, Bella. My decision is final. Now hand me your cellphone," he ordered.

I sighed before taking my phone out of my pocket and handing it to him.

"Thank you. Now go into your room, get everything electronic that can be moved, and bring them back to me."

I got up and headed to the door, but I turned around at the last second. "I'm sorry, Carlisle."

"I know you are. I don't think I need to tell you that this kind of thing is not to ever happen again.

I shook my head. No, I definitely didn't need to be told twice. Carlisle had just proven to me that while he was still very compassionate and understanding, he could also bring the hammer down quite nicely.

"Good. Now please go do as I instructed. After this week is said and done, we won't speak of it again. Go on," Carlisle urged.

I nodded and quickly left.


	17. Chapter 17

**Edward's POV**

It had been nearly three weeks since my return to my family and Bella was still not talking to me. Actually, most of my family wasn't talking to me, but Bella was of course the relationship that I wanted to mend the most. I missed her terribly. Sure, technically I saw her every day, but there was so much tension between us that it was like we were on separate continents.

I just wished Bella would talk to me, even if it was to scream at me again and tell me what I jerk I was. But she wouldn't even do that. She'd barely say two words to me. Not that I could really blame her. It was my own fault that Bella hated me right now. That didn't stop me from wishing things were different though.

I was soon pulled from my thoughts when I heard someone enter my room. I looked up and saw Alice looking mighty displeased.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"You're talking to me now?" I asked. Like I said, no one in my family was talking to me. Well, Carlisle and Esme were, but they were my parents. On some level, they had to forgive me. They were still quite upset with me though.

"Only to tell you to stop being an idiot," Alice said.

"That seems to be everyone's theme song," I muttered. I couldn't even count how many times I've been called an idiot by a member of my family since I got back.

"Well, then maybe you should listen. Look at you. You do nothing but sit in here moping all day and night," Alice said.

"What would you prefer I do. I don't know if you noticed, but there's not much to do around here and I'm not allowed to leave the house without Carlisle." I was still severely grounded and it did not look like it would be ending anytime soon.

"How about trying to get Bella to forgive you?" Alice asked.

"Bella won't even talk to me," I said miserably.

"Well, sitting in here and moping is sure going to help," Alice said sarcastically.

I glared at her. I didn't need her sly comments. I felt crappy enough knowing that Bella hated me. "Did you come in here for any reason other than to make me feel worse than I already do?"

Alice sighed. "Yes, actually I did. I came to help you. God knows you don't deserve it, but I am sick of seeing my brother and sister so miserable."

"I don't think there's anything you can do to help me," I told her sadly.

"Oh, yeah, that's the spirit. Give up before you've even tried."

"Bella won't even talk to me. She wants nothing to do with me. She hates me," I said.

Alice rolled her eyes. "If she hated you do you really think she would've defied Carlisle and went all the way to Italy just to save your ass? She doesn't hate you, Edward. She's just pissed off. With good reason by the way."

"I know that!" I said exasperatedly. I didn't need anyone to tell me that my estranged relationship with Bella was my fault. I knew that. I had caused her pain and I had to live with that.

"Well, what are you going to do about it?" Alice demanded.

"What do you want me to do about it? I can't go back and fix it. Trust me I wish I could." I would give anything to change what happened. To go back to that day in the woods and stop myself from doing the dumbest thing I'd ever done.

"You can try to make up for it now. Now you've told Bella you're sorry and that you love her during that whole family meeting thing, but you guys haven't really talked," Alice said.

"That's because on any given day, there are six other vampires around, three of which would take great pleasure in interrupting us," I said. Carlisle had stayed true to his word. He'd been watching me like a hawk, especially when Bella was around. He was making sure I didn't hurt her again. Jasper and Emmett were no better either. They had become insanely overprotective since I returned.

"If I could get rid of them, would you be able to talk to Bella then?" Alice asked.

I looked up at her. "You really think you can get rid of everyone."

Alice smiled at me. "Are you doubting me?"

I smiled back. I knew better than that. An unspoken rule in our family was that you never bet against Alice. "You'd do this for me?"

"Actually I'm doing it more for Bella, but yeah. So figure out what you're going to say and quick because you have until this weekend to figure it out," Alice said before leaving without another word.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

The weekend came sooner than I expected and I found myself in front of the mirror in my bedroom as I got dressed. I was dressed in a pair of tan dress pants and a black button down shirt. I was planning on making Bella a special dinner. She could eat while we talked.

Soon I heard a knock on the door. "Come in."

Alice entered my room seconds later. "Well, look at you."

"Yeah, I'm planning on making something special for Bella before we talk. Did you get everyone out of the house?

"Not yet, but everyone will be leaving soon. I told Carlisle I had a vision of everyone going hunting," Alice said.

My face fell. "But I don't want to go hunting. I wanna work things out with Bella."

"And you will. You're not going hunting. You are going to convince Carlisle at the last minute to let you stay home," Alice said.

"Am I going to be successful?" I asked hopefully.

"I think so. I can't see you actually trying to convince him, probably because Bella is in the room, but I see everyone all out hunting with you nowhere to be found, so I assume that means you're not there," she explained.

"What about Bella? I mean, everyone going hunting includes her," I said.

"I've got that covered. Bella and will be going alone so we can have girl talk. We'll be gone for a few hours, long enough for you to get ready, and then we'll be back," Alice said.

"Wow. This just might work," I said.

"Edward, Alice!" Esme called from downstairs.

"Okay, come on. Showtime," Alice said before leading the way out of my room and down the stairs. We met the others in the entryway.

"Edward, why are you dressed like that. It's hardly appropriate attire for hunting," Carlisle said.

"Um, actually, I don't want to go hunting. Can I just stay home?" I asked.

"No," Carlisle said immediately.

I cringed inwardly, but I wasn't surprised by it. Carlisle still didn't trust me much. I would have to try harder to get him to agree. "Please, Carlisle. I just need some time to myself."

"You lost the right to privacy when you tried to kill yourself. Now go upstairs and change," he ordered.

Okay, this was going to be harder than I thought. I couldn't give up though. Bella and I needed the chance to talk while no one was around. "I know I screwed up, Carlisle. That's why I want the time alone. I need to think about everything I did and try to figure out what I can do to make sure it doesn't happen again."I hated myself for deceiving him like this and I knew I would probably pay for it later, but it was worth it if I could make things right with Bella.

Carlisle looked to be thoughtful for a minute and then took a few steps towards me. "Alright, Edward. You can consider this a test to see if I can trust you. I will allow you to stay home, but if you so much as step one foot outside this house or do anything else you know I wouldn't approve of, you _will_ regret it."

"I understand."

"I hope so. Do not make me regret this," he warned me before turning to the others. "Alright, let's go. Alice, make sure you stay with Bella at all times, okay?"

"Sure thing," Alice said before turning to me. _'Try not to burn the house down. We'll be back in about three hours.'_

I nodded and watched as they all left.


	18. Chapter 18

**Bella's POV**

I knew Alice was up to something. From before we even left the house I knew. I saw the way she looked at Edward before we left. She was telling in her head. Speaking of Edward, since when did he not want to go hunting? He took every chance he could get to go hunting, especially now that he wasn't allowed to leave the house for much. He was always ready to get out.

If all of that wasn't enough proof that Alice and Edward were up to something, Alice deciding she needed to go back to the house a few hours later because she forgot something was a dead giveaway. First of all, Alice doesn't forget anything. Ever. It comes with being a psychic. Second, what could she possible need on a hunting trip?

Alice pulled the car into the driveway. "Okay, can you just run inside and grab the necklace on my dresser?"

I sighed knowing exactly what was about to happen. "You're going to peel out of here the second I get out of this car, aren't you?"

Alice brought her hand to her chest in mock hurt.

"Oh, don't look at me like that, Alice, I know you. You did not come all the way out here for a stupid necklace. No more than Edward stayed because he wanted to think about the stupid things he's done," I said.

Alice gave up all pretenses. "He just wants to talk to you, Bella."

"And 'Bella, let's talk' wouldn't have worked?" I asked, still very irritated at being manipulated.

"No, not with all the overprotective males in this family. Look, just talk to him. This rift between you two is tearing you apart."

She wasn't wrong about that. I missed Edward terribly. I missed how close we used to be. The fact that we were now basically estranged hurt, but I wasn't sure how to change it. I wasn't sure it could be changed. I loved Edward, but I didn't know how to move past what he did to me. "What do you want me to do, Alice? You want me to just forget the crap he put me through?"

"No, of course not. What Edward did to you was terrible. He deserves any hell that you give him. But I know you love him. I know you want to forgive him. Not forget, but forgive. You should at least talk to him. Get everything hashed out. Even if you don't get back together with him, at least you'll have everything sorted," Alice said.

I sighed. I knew she was right. I had to sit down with Edward and talk to him. It was the only way either of us was going to find any peace. "Alright. I'll talk to Edward."

Alice smiled. "Good. I know you really don't want to, but either way it'll be better for both of you."

I nodded and got out of the car. I watched Alice leave and then walked into the house. I went into the kitchen and watched as Edward placed a plate of food on the table where candles were lit. It looked very nice. I had to work hard to keep a smile from reaching my face. I had to remember that I was mad at him.

Edward turned to me and smiled. "Hey."

I walked towards him. "You cooked? Should I be worried?"

"No. I...I...I'm I don't think so. It all tastes and smells like cardboard to me, but I-"

"Edward! It was a joke. It looks great." And it did. It was nothing fancy. Just some pasta, but it looked great.

Edward blushed a little. "Well, go ahead and eat."

I sat down and began to do just that. Edward sat down across from me. "So how long have you and Alice been putting this little caper together?"

"A few days. Are you mad at me?" Edward asked.

"I can't say I'm thrilled at being manipulated like this, but we do need to talk," I said before taking a bite of my food.

"I wasn't trying to manipulate you. I just wanted to talk and I didn't want anyone else to be around," Edward said.

"And talking is exactly what we're going to do. Because you're right, we do need it. So go ahead. You put this into motion. You go first," I told him.

Edward took a deep breath. "Okay, here it goes. From the moment I met you, I felt this pull towards you. And it wasn't just the singer blood or the fact that I couldn't hear your thoughts. I felt something for you. I tried to deny it, but I couldn't, and the more I tried to deny it, the more I fell for you. So I brought you into my world despite the fact that I knew you shouldn't be in it."

Already I felt myself getting angry. Who the hell was he to tell what world I should and shouldn't be a part of? This was my world just as much as it was his.

"You were a human, I was a vampire. Or so we thought. Those worlds aren't supposed to mix, and for good reason. I could've killed you sooner than look at you. So yeah, I knew that it was probably a mistake to bring you into my life. But I couldn't stay away no matter how hard I tried. I already loved you too much."

"I loved you too. I don't think you realize how much. That pull that you talk about, I felt it too. You were all I thought about from the moment I met you. I don't think you realize who I was before I met you. I was living an empty existence. I didn't realize it at the time, but I was. Things changed when I met you and the rest of the family. It was like I was finally complete," I explained. I needed to make him understand what he had done for my world so that he could also understand what it did to me when he left.

"Bella, I think that was the vampire inside you realizing that you didn't belong among humans. I just wish that we had known what we know now then," Edward said.

"So do I, but you know what? It shouldn't have mattered. Human, vampire, it shouldn't matter. You said you loved me," I reminded him.

"I did. I still do."

"Then that should've been enough to make you stay. You don't leave the people you love!" I told him, my voice raising an octave.

"I was trying to protect you," Edward said.

"You say that like it's supposed to make everything all better. It doesn't. You left me alone in the woods! You nearly destroyed me! Do you not get that? I was a zombie for months. Charlie was thinking about having me committed!" I screamed.

Edward visibly flinched, but I ignored him. I wasn't done. "And you wanna talk about protection? Tell me how you protected me. You left, but that doesn't mean the danger went away. I encountered laurent one day and he tried to kill me! He also said that Victoria was after me. She wants revenge on us because of James. But you didn't protect me from either of them. Jacob Black and the rest of the wolves from La Push did. If it weren't for them, I'd be dead."

Edward's eyes grew wider and wider the more I went on. He obviously didn't know any of this. "Oh my God. Bella, I'm so sorry. If I had known-"

"But you didn't know! You didn't know because you weren't there! I needed you. I needed all of you. And not just for protection. Do you have any idea how scary it is to wake up one morning and find out that you're turning into a vampire, and that the only people who can help you deal with it are gone? I was terrified. I didn't know what to do," I explained. I felt tears well up in my eyes. I was starting to lose it. Reliving all this was really painful.

Edward had the decency to look ashamed.

"I had to go to your house and pick up everyone's scents to find you because I had no other recourse. And I didn't know what would happen when I got here. For all I knew they would tell me they didn't want anything to do with me. After all, they left just like you did. That had to mean they didn't give a damn," I said.

"No, don't blame them. It's not their fault. I manipulated them. They all said no at first, but I played on their love for you. I reminded them of what Jasper did, every gory detail and about how every one of them, except for Carlisle, had wanted your blood too. I knew what buttons to push and I pushed them. I told them that by staying they would be killing you," he said.

In that moment, I felt more rage then I'd ever felt in my life. I already knew that Edward had manipulated the family to some extent, but never did I even imagine he would do something like that. That he would prey on their worst fears that way.

I got up and angrily shoved Edward, sending him and his chair to the ground. The chair broke into a bunch of pieces. "You bastard! What, it wasn't bad enough that you nearly destroyed me? You had to attack your own family too? What is wrong with you?"

Edward slowly picked himself up off the ground and looked at me sadly. "I don't have an excuse for what I did. I mean, I told you why I did it, but I know that doesn't excuse it. I hurt you and I hurt our family. I know that. I wish I could take it back, but I can't. I'm sorry."

"What do you want me to do, Edward? Say its okay? It's not okay. Things are not okay between us. It's more than the fact that you hurt me. You betrayed my trust," I told him.

"I know," Edward said as he looked down.

"No, you don't know!" I yelled loudly as I slammed my hand against the wooden table, breaking a piece of it off in the process. "You have no idea what you've done to me! I used to trust you with everything I had. Now I can't even trust you to stick around. That's why I've been avoiding you for so long. Because when Carlisle finally frees you from your jail sentence and you take off, I don't want to be devastated.

"Bella, I swear I'm not going to leave again," Edward promised.

"You don't get it. You can swear all you want that you're going to stick around, but I don't trust it. I don't trust you. How can I? It's not the first time you made me that promise. You promised me in Phoenix that you wouldn't leave. A few months later, you were gone. How am I supposed to trust anything you say now?" I asked. I could tell it hurt him to hear that I didn't trust him, but I didn't care. He needed to hear this.

Edward looked at me pitiful. "I don't know. I guess I'll just have to prove that you can. I'll have to prove that to everyone. Will you let me?"

I hesitated. I did want to trust him again. I wanted us to be how we were before, but I was afraid. I was afraid that if I went back there, I would get hurt again. I wouldn't be able to take it if Edward and I got back what we had and he took off again. "I don't know."

"I just want a chance, Bella. One more chance. I promise I-"

"No! No more promises. Your promises don't mean anything to me anymore. If we do this, it has to be different. I won't go back to where I was a few months ago. So if there is any doubt in your mind that we can be together, you need to say so now," I told him.

"There isn't. So does this mean you'll give me another chance?" Edward asked hopefully.

"I'm not saying yes and I'm not saying no. I haven't forgiven you and I don't trust you. But I'd like to be able to do both of those things. All I can offer you right now is a chance to start fresh. That doesn't mean we're back together because we're not. We'll start from scratch and see what happens," I said. It was the best I could give him. I couldn't forgive or trust him yet, so a relationship was definitely out for right now. I did believe that in the future we would likely make our way back to each other because I did believe he was my mate, but it would be a long time before I was ready for that.

"I can live with that," Edward said with a slight smile on his face.

I returned the smile and then looked around at the shattered chair and broken table. "Oh, man. Esme's gonna kill us."


	19. Chapter 19

**Bella's POV**

The next day, Edward, Alice, and I were all in the living room waiting for the others to come home. Edward was pacing the floor nervously. "Edward, would you knock it off? You're making even more nervous than I already am. I don't know why you're so worried anyway. I'm the one that broke everything.

Edward went over and sat down on the love seat. "Yeah, but you weren't supposed to be here. You were here because of Alice and me. Carlisle's going to realize that and he's going to kill me."

I couldn't really argue with that. Edward was right. He'd deliberately deceived our father. I knew from recent experience that Carlisle would not be pleased.

"I miss the good old days when all we got was a disappointed look and maybe a small lecture," Alice complained before glaring at Edward. "You just had to go to Italy and ruin it, didn't you?"

Just then we heard a door open. "Oh God. They're back already?" Alice asked.

We all got up and walked into the kitchen. We breathed sighs of relief when we realized it was just Emmett, Jasper, and Rosalie. Carlisle and Esme weren't here yet.

"So who's the dead vampire walking?" Emmett asked grinning.

I winced.

"So it's you, baby sister? You destroyed the kitchen?" Emmett asked.

"I didn't destroy the kitchen! Just the table and chair," I told him.

He and Jasper both laughed at me and Rosalie had a smug look on her face. I glared at all of them.

"When did all this happen anyway?" Jasper asked.

"The night. Edward and I got into it and I lost it. I didn't mean to break anything, I just got mad," I told them.

Jasper and Emmett both glared at Edward.

"Oh, knock it off, you two. It's not his fault. I should've controlled myself," I said.

"Wait, did you say this happened last night? Weren't you hunting with Alice?" Emmett asked.

"Well, we did go hunting, but not for long. Miss Matchmaker over here decided to orchestrate the whole hunting thing so that Edward and I could talk without interruption," I explained.

"Alice, why would you do that? Hasn't he caused her enough pain?" Jasper asked, ever the protective older brother.

"Jasper, calm down, it's okay. I'm actually glad she did it. Edward and I actually came to an understanding," I told him.

"Was that before or after you destroyed the furniture?" Emmett asked jokingly.

"Okay, no more laughing at my expense. It was an accident," I said.

"Esme's going to kill you?" Rosalie said with a smirk on her face.

"Rose, I don't think that was necessary," Emmett said. He probably realized that unlike the rest of them, Rose wasn't trying to lighten the mood. Quite the opposite actually.

"Where are they anyway? How long do we have to prepare for their arrival?" Edward asked.

Just then, we heard the door.

"I'd say about five seconds," Emmett answered.

I gulped and silently wished there was a way of hiding what happened from Carlisle and Esme. I would give anything for them to just not notice.

Carlisle and Esme entered the room seconds later. "Hey. Why's everyone standing in the kitchen?" Esme asked.

I was frankly surprised when she didn't start yelling. I was sure she would as soon as she saw the mess, but she didn't. In fact, she and Carlisle were both acting like they didn't even notice it.

"Oh, you know, just hanging out," Emmett said.

"Is everything alright?" Esme asked.

"Why aren't they saying anything?" I whispered to Alice and Edward low enough so that Carlisle and Esme wouldn't pick it up.

"I don't know, but let's not look a gift horse in the mouth," Alice said. "Everything's fine."

"Well, I see the house is still standing, Edward. I'm glad to see that it wasn't a mistake to place my trust in you," Carlisle said

Okay, seriously, what was going on? How did they not see the mess I'd made of the house? Not that I was complaining. I didn't really want them to see it. I could definitely live without them ever finding out. I was just a bit confused. How could they miss the huge pile of broken furniture? It was plain as day. You couldn't even walk into the room without seeing it. Yet, Esme and Carlisle had done just that.

"Okay, are they blind?" Rosalie said.

"Rose, shut up!" Alice whispered harshly.

"Rosalie, what are you talking about?" Carlisle asked.

"Can you not see the broken table and chair right over there," Rosalie asked as she pointed to the small pile of rubble just a few feet away.

Esme looked over to it in confusion. "What are you talking about, honey? The table looks fine to me."

"Really?" we all asked at once.

"Yeah, why wouldn't it?" she asked.

"Because the newborn destroyed it while fighting with Edward," Rosalie said.

"Rose, shut the hell up!" Edward said angrily.

"Edward, language!" Esme scolded.

"I see it now," Carlisle said before going over to the pile. "But it wasn't like this a second ago."

"Yes, it was. It's been like that since last night. Everyone saw it but you two," Edward said.

"How did we not see it? This all looked fine a minute ago," Esme said, utterly confused.

Jasper looked at me with a curious look on his face. "Bella, you were really nervous before Esme and Carlisle walked in. Do you remember what you were thinking in that moment?"

"Just that I wished they wouldn't notice..." My eyes widened as realization hit me. I had done it. Somehow, I had made it so that Carlisle and Esme didn't see the destruction until after they'd been told about it. I had made them see something that wasn't real. It had been an illusion.

I shook my head vigorously as the implication reached me. I had done what _she _could do. I had _her_ gift and I wished to God I didn't. "No! No, no, no."

"Bella, sweetheart, calm down please," Carlisle told me calmly.

"No! No, this can't be happening!" I cried before racing out of the room and up the stairs.


	20. Chapter 20

**Carlisle's POV**

I watched in shock as my daughter ran from the room. Something was definitely up and I was sure it had something to do with the broken furniture and why Esme and I didn't see it at first. I was also sure that Jasper had figured it out.

"What was that about?" Esme asked.

"Jasper?" I questioned.

"Bella did it. She's the reason you didn't notice the table and chair. I think she unintentionally created an illusion so that you wouldn't notice it," Jasper said.

"Oh my God. She has Melinda's power. That's why she got so upset," Esme said.

"I need to go talk to her," I said before heading towards the stairs.

"I'll come with you," Esme said from behind me.

We went upstairs to Bella's room. I could hear her crying inside. I knocked on the door.

"Go away," Bella sobbed from the other side.

I sighed. "I'm afraid we can't do that, sweetheart. We're going to come in, alright?"

When I didn't get a response, I opened the door. Bella was laying on her bed crying. I immediately went over to her and sat down on the edge of the bed. Esme sat on the other side of her.

"I didn't mean to," Bella cried as she started to sit up a little.

Esme put an arm around her. "We know that, honey. We know that you would never intentionally trick us that way."

"That's right. You don't need to worry. We're not mad," I assured my daughter.

"But I did what _she_ did," Bella said.

"No, Bella, you didn't. Yes, you used the same gift, but-"

"Gift. Some gift. More like a curse. I don't want this, Carlisle. I don't wanna be anything like her," Bella said.

"You're not," Esme said.'

"But I-"

"No, just listen to me please," Esme interrupted. "You are not like her. Yes, you share the same power, but that doesn't make you like her. It's not about the power; it's about how you use it. Melinda used her power to hurt people, but that doesn't mean you have."

"But it can hurt people," Bella argued.

"That's true of almost any power, Bella. Take Jasper's gift for instance. His gift to control the emotions of others could be very damaging in the wrong hands, but Jasper doesn't abuse his gift. I know you won't either. You will learn to control it and make sure not use it for anything harmful," I told her confidently. I knew Bella would never misuse her talent the way Melinda had. She was too loving and compassionate. I just had to make her see that.

Bella shook her head. "I won't use it at all."

"Sweetheart, I don't want you to suppress a part of yourself. That's what you'll be doing if you completely ignore it. You do not need to do that to prove you're not like her. You could never be like her," I said.

"How can you be so sure?" Bella asked.

"Because we know you. You may have a couple of things in common with her, like her gift and DNA, but you have other things that she could never have. You have compassion and a deep capacity for love. The fact that you're worried about this is proof that you could never be like her," Esme said.

"I wish you could've been my mother," Bella said.

Esme smiled widely. She loved hearing those words. "As far as I'm concerned, I am."

"Me too," Bella said before hugging my wife.

I smiled at them. I loved that my wife and daughter had such a strong bond. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Bella pulled away after a minute and then I put my arm around her. "Are you alright now, Bella?"

Bella nodded. "Yeah. I still don't want this stupid gift, but I guess I can deal with it."

"Good. I believe we have something else we need to discuss now." As much as I didn't want to, I needed to speak to Bella about the broken furniture. I needed to know what happened and how.

Bella grimaced. "It was an accident, I swear."

"I believe you. We would still like to know how it happened," I told her.

Bella sighed. "Edward and I were arguing last night. I got angry and I shoved him. He fell out of the chair and it broke. Then later I slammed my hand against the table and it broke. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to do it."

"Wait back up a minute. You said last night. You were supposed to be hunting with Alice last night. Why were you hear with Edward?" I asked her. Something very fishy was going on and I had a feeling it involved at least two of my other children.

Bella bit her tongue as she realized the slip up. It was obvious she didn't want to say.

I narrowed my eyes at my youngest daughter. "Young Lady, I asked you a question."

Bella sighed in defeat. "Alice and I did go hunting, but we were only gone for a few hours. We came back because Alice said she forgot something."

That didn't sound right to me. Alice never forgot anything. As someone with her gift, it was nearly impossible for her to do so.

"I knew she was lying when she said it. Alice doesn't forget things. She and Edward were working together to get me and him alone together for a while," Bella explained.

Anger began to take over quickly. I couldn't believe that Edward had the audacity to defy me like this again. It was like he was going out of his way to make sure I could never trust him again. It was clear that he'd lied to me about wanted to stay home to think about what he'd done. Alice had probably lied as well. There was never any vision of us going hunting. She'd just said that to get us all out of the house.

_'Edward Anthony Cullen! You take yourself to my office this instant! Tell Alice to do the same,' _I ordered telepathically, knowing full well that he could hear me.

"Look, please don't be angry. Alice was trying to help and Edward and I really did need to talk," Bella said.

I sighed. "I realize that, Bella, but both of them know better than to lie. Is there anything else you want to say about what happened?"

"Just that I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do it," Bella said again.

"We realize that Bella. We know it was an accident and that you just got angry. You have every right to be angry with Edward, with all of us really. However, you need to learn to control your temper," Esme said.

Bella bowed her head down guiltily.

Esme lifted Bella's chin up with her finger. "It's okay for you to be angry, but violence and destruction of property is never okay in this family. Do you understand?"

Bella nodded. "Yeah. I'm sorry."

Esme nodded.

"So are you going to punish me?" Bella asked.

"Not this time. Only because we realize that you are a newborn and some lapses in self-control are to be expected. However, in the future, we expect you to think things through and try harder to keep your temper under control. If something like this happens again, there will be consequences," I warned.

"It won't, I promise."

"Good. Alright, I'm going to talk to the two miscreants," I said before heading towards the door.

I walked down the hall and into my office. Edward and Alice were both standing by my desk looking nervous. "Couch, now! I trust you both know why you're here."

They both nodded and sat down on the couch.

I walked towards them and looked at them disappointingly. "Alice, I don't think I've ever been more disappointed in you than I am right now. How dare you use your gift to deceive me? I thought I taught you better than that!" That was the part that angered me the most. I had just gotten done talking to Bella about those who abuse their gifts. I just never thought one of my own children would do such a thing.

"Carlisle, I'm so sorry. I just wanted to help Bella and Edward. They were both miserable. I wanted to help them," Alice said.

"Then why didn't you come to me? Why didn't you just ask me to get everyone out?" I asked. I wouldn't have left the house myself because I would want to make sure that I was there if Bella needed me, but I would've asked the others to leave.

"Because I thought you'd say no," Alice said.

"If you thought I'd say no then that should've told you something, shouldn't it? You should've realized right then that it was something you shouldn't have done."

Edward then opened his mouth to speak, but I stopped him. "Edward, if I were you, I'd keep my mouth shut! Rest assured, I will get to you," I said before turning back to Alice. "You used your gift to deceive me, Alice. Tell me, how am I supposed to trust you after that? How am I ever to believe one of your visions again?"

Alice had the decency to look ashamed. "I...I'm sorry."

"Not as sorry as you're about to be. Hand me your credit cards and keys to your car."

Alice's face blanched and she opened her mouth to object, but I didn't give her the chance. "Save it, Alice. I don't want to hear it. Give them to me now!"

Alice groaned and took out everything I asked for. She winced as she handed them over to me.

"These are mine for a month, and for the next two weeks, you will not leave this house for any reason other than hunting. Is that understood?" I asked sternly.

"Yes sir," Alice said looking down.

"I want you in your room for the rest of the day. Go!" I ordered.

Alice immediately got up and headed out the door. I watched her go and turned my attention back to Edward. "Tell me, Edward; is it your intention to make sure I never trust you again?"

Edward visibly flinched, but didn't say a word.

"What did I say to you before I left yesterday? And you had best open your mouth and answer right now!" I said angrily.

"Y...you said that if I did anything you wouldn't approve of, I'd regret it," Edward answered.

"So you didn't believe me then? Or maybe you thought that you had nothing left to lose. Well, I'm here to prove you wrong. From now until I say otherwise, you will not so much as leave my earshot. That means that when I leave the house, so do you. Wherever I go, you go. The only exception is the hospital since I can't properly watch you there. In that case, you will remain where your mother can watch you. Is that understood?" I asked angrily. It wasn't even the plan to be alone with Bella that angered me so much. It was the fact that he'd betrayed my trust yet again to do so, and just when I thought I might be able to start trusting him again too.

"Yes sir," Edward whispered just loud enough for me to hear him.

"You just took a giant step back in getting me to trust you again. I hope you realize that," I told him.

Edward nodded that he did.

"Get to your room. What I said to Alice applies to you as well. You will not leave your room for the rest of day."

Edward got up and headed out of the room.


	21. Chapter 21

**Bella's POV**

I was in my room reading and listening to music when I heard a knock on the door. "Come in," I said before closing the book and taking the earphones out.

Emmett and Jasper walked in seconds later. "Hey there, Baby sis. You alright?" he asked before plopping down next to me on the bed. Jasper grabbed my desk chair and turned it around so that he was sitting backwards on it.

"I'm fine, guys. Well as fine as I can be," I said. I was still kind of upset about my new power. As far as I was concerned, that was the worst power I could possibly get.

"That was so cool out there. You so totally punked the 'rents," Emmett said grinning.

"That was not cool, Emmett. It was the opposite of cool and I'm sure Jasper will agree." Jasper of all people would see how horrible this really was. He'd personally seen what that power could do.

"Actually, I thought it was a little cool," Jasper said.

"You did not," I said. Jasper was just trying to make me feel better. I saw right through him.

"No, seriously. It's a cool power to have," Jasper said.

"How can you say that after what it did to you?" I asked. I couldn't believe he was even thinking something like that after that same gift had been used to nearly destroy him.

"You're looking at it the wrong way, Bella. The power didn't do anything to me. It was simply a tool used by someone to do damage," Jasper explained.

"Think of it this way, Bells. You have a hammer. A hammer is usually used to build stuff, but some psycho decides to use it to bash someone's skull in. Now that's not the hammer's fault is it?" Emmett asked.

I immediately started laughing. "Only you, Emmett. You're the only one I know that would make an analogy like that."

"But he's right. The power was never the problem. It was the person using it," Jasper said.

"That's what Carlisle said. I get what you're all saying, I do, but I still don't like it. I don't like having anything in common with her," I said.

"You have much more in common with Carlisle than you do with her. You have her gift. That's it. And I know you won't you use it in the same way that she did. You have Carlisle's compassion. You have his capacity to love and his easy ability to forgive," Jasper said.

I smiled at him. "I don't know about that last one. I can't seem to forgive Edward."

"Yeah, well, Edward hasn't helped himself in that department," Emmett said.

"Are Edward and Alice okay?" I felt really bad for ratting them out to Carlisle, but I didn't have much choice. Carlisle wasn't going to let it go and I would not lie to him again. I didn't want to risk losing his trust the way Edward had. Our relationship was too new and fragile right now.

Both Emmett and Jasper winced. "Well, let's just say that I don't think either of them will be trying this particular stunt in the near future," Jasper said.

"Yeah, Carlisle successfully brought the whip down on both of their asses. Figuratively speaking of course," Emmett added.

I began to feel extremely guilty. Maybe I should've tried harder to keep what happened from Carlisle and Esme.

Apparently my shield was not up because Jasper seemed to sense my guilt. "Don't feel guilt, Bella. They both knew what they were getting into when they decided to lie and trick everyone."

I was about to say something when I felt another presence. I looked towards the doorway and saw Rosalie, who was glaring at me just as coldly as always.

"I see everyone had the same idea. First Carlisle and Esme, now you two," Rosalie said coolly.

"Rose, don't," Emmett said.

Rosalie ignored him. "Everyone has to run and appease the poor, pathetic newborn. God forbid she feels bad for a second."

I started to get angry. Maybe it was the newborn in me, but Rosalie's condescending attitude was really starting to piss me off and I was done being quite about it.

I stood up and glared at Rosalie. "Emmett and Jasper, get out. I need to talk to Rosalie in private."

"Bella, I don't think that's such a good idea," Jasper said warily. I could tell he was worried about my control and what might happen.

"Don't worry. I won't hurt her," I said.

Rosalie laughed at me. "You hurt me? That'll be the day."

"Go, now," I ordered both my brothers.

"Alright, but if I hear anything break, I'm coming back. Come on, Emmett," Jasper said.

"But if there's gonna be a chic fight, I wanna watch," Emmett whined.

Jasper scowled and dragged him out.

I waited until I was sure Jasper and Emmett were far enough away before starting in on Rosalie. "I don't know what the hell your problem is, but I'm tired of it. I'm done walking around on eggshells in my own home just to avoid upsetting you."

"Oh, your home?" Rosalie asked.

"That's right, my home. This is my home and my family just as much as it is yours and I'm tired of you acting like it's not," I couldn't even believe myself as I was saying these things. Rosalie had always intimidated me, even after I started changing. I just it was true what they said. You could only push someone around so many times before they pushed back. This was me pushing back.

"Oh really? And how long have you been a part of this family? A couple of months. I've been here for decades, and I was chosen by Carlisle. You were just a mistake that we all got stuck with," Rosalie said smugly.

I couldn't deny that her words affected me. She was throwing all my insecurities in my face and it hurt. But I refused to let it show. I needed to show Rosalie that I was done taking her crap. "That's right, Rose. Carlisle didn't choose me. I was already his. He brought me into this world. The small amount of blood that lingers in my veins now, I got from him. I am his flesh and blood." I knew how vindictive and cruel I probably sounded, but I didn't care. It was no more cruel than the things Rosalie had said to me, both now and in the past.

Rosalie growled at me, telling me that I was indeed getting under her skin. "You're nothing! You're just a mistake he got saddled with. The only reason he keeps you around is because he feels sorry for you."

I growled back at her, also feeling the sting. About the only thing keeping me from lunging at her was the fact that it wouldn't end well for me. Oh, I wasn't afraid of Rosalie. I was afraid of what Carlisle and Esme would do. They'd already warned me about violence. It would really be bad if I disobeyed that rule in the same day it was told to me.

"And you think he keeps you around because he likes you? Edward told me the only reason he changed you was so that Edward could have a mate," Okay, now I was crossing a line and I knew it, but I was really, really angry and I couldn't stop myself from saying it.

Rosalie snarled at me and immediately lunged at me. She threw me to the ground and punched me in the stomach. I shoved her off of me, sending her barreling into the wall and then jumped onto her. I got a couple of good licks in before I was pulled off. "Get off me!" I ordered my captor.

"Not going to happen, little sister. You need to calm down," Jasper said.

I ignored him and started trying to pull out of his grip to get to Rosalie, who was being held back by Emmett.

"Both of you need to calm down now!" Emmett said.

"What the hell is going on in here!"

I turned to the doorway and every ounce of fight I had in me died. My father was standing there looking really, really pissed off. I was screwed.


	22. Chapter 22

**Carlisle's POV**

After dealing with Edward and Alice, I went to my desk and started reading one of my medical journals. It was the best way I knew to calm down aside from going hunting. I was doing that for about an hour before I heard a knock on the door. "Come in."

I grinned as soon as I saw my wife enter. She could always put a smile on my face, even when I was angry, which I still was quite a bit. "Hello, Love.

"Hey. You calmed down any?" Esme asked. She of course knew how upset I had been with Edward and Alice. Even if she hadn't heard what I'd said to them she'd know that. She knew me that well.

"Yes, I'm better now. I won't say I'm a hundred percent. I just can't believe what those two pulled," I said.

"I know, but I do think their intentions were good. The way they went about it was dead wrong, but they were trying to do a good thing. Alice was trying to help Edward and Bella, and Edward was just trying to make up for what he did," Esme said.

"I just can't believe that they would deceive me like this," I said. I was still very upset about that. There was nothing I hated more than lies and deceptions. When you deliberately deceived someone, you betrayed their trust. That was what my children had done. I had trusted them both this weekend, and they'd taken that trust and carelessly tossed it aside.

Esme nodded in agreement. "Okay, I agree with you there. Deception is unacceptable. A fact they both know. I assumed they've been punished?"

"Severely. Alice is not to leave this house for two weeks and I've taken her credit cards and her driving privileges for a month. Edward I don't even know what do with anymore. Just when I think he's starting to understand the consequences of his actions, he betrays my trust yet again. I told him he was going to be watched like a hawk for the foreseeable future. That is that he won't be allowed in or out of the house alone," I explained to her.

Esme nodded. "I think that's all fair. I know you're worried about Edward, but I think he will learn. It's just that his judgment becomes a bit clouded when it comes to Bella."

I was about to say something when I heard a loud noise coming from somewhere inside the house. It sounded like someone or something had crashed into something else. "I swear, I'm going to kill them all and be done with it," I said before getting up and making my way out of the room.

I walked down the hall with Esme close behind me. I soon became aware that the scuffle was coming from Bella's room.

"Get off me!" I heard her yell, followed by Jasper's voice telling her to calm down.

I was walking by Edward's room when the door opened. He obviously heard it too and wanted to know what was going on.

"Get back in your room, Edward. I'll handle it," I told him. The last thing I needed was for Edward to get involved. Esme was correct when she said that Edward's judgment was clouded when it came to Bella. He would likely act rashly without thinking.

Without waiting for a response from my son, I continued on my way to my daughter's room. Esme must have stayed with Edward because I no longer sensed her behind me.

When I walked into Bella's room, I saw that half the room was a mess and Jasper and Emmett were holding her and Rosalie back from each other. "What the hell is going on!"

Bella's eyes moved to me and all of her fight went out. She could obviously sense my ire. Rosalie on the other hand was still growling and fighting to get out of Emmett's grasp.

"Rosalie Hale, if you know what's good for you, you will calm yourself right now!" I told her. I was beyond angry. I'd had more than enough today with Edward and Alice situation. The last thing I needed right now was for my other two daughters to be having a go at each other.

Knowing that I was serious Rosalie forced herself to relax, but she still glared daggers at Bella.

"Now would one of you care to tell me just what it is you are doing?" I asked. I could guess from the scene in front of me and probably come up with an answer very close to the truth, but I wanted them to tell me.

Both Bella and Rosalie avoided my gaze and refused to answer, causing my temper to shorten considerably. "Well? I'm waiting!"

My daughters still refused to speak, causing me to growl in response. "What is it with you lot today? Is it your goal to make me as angry as possible. Someone had better start speaking now!"

"It's our fault, Carlisle. We shouldn't have left the room," Jasper said.

"Since your sisters are obviously unwilling to, why don't you tell me what happened, Jasper?" I phrased it as a question, but my son knew very well that it wasn't a request.

"Em and I were talking to Bella when Rosalie came in. She made some nasty comments and Bella got angry. She asked us to leave so she could talk to Rose alone. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have agreed. I should've known better," Jasper said, obviously speaking of his experience with newborns.

I held my hand up to stop him and then turned to Rosalie. "What did you say to Bella?"

"I just said that it was nice of everyone to be so concerned for Bella. I don't know why she got so upset," Rosalie said with a sweet smile on her face.

Bella growled and tired get out of Jasper's arms. "You lying Bitch! That is not what happened and you know it!"

"Hey! That's enough! You are to never use that word in my presence again, and certainly not towards another member of this family. Do you understand me?" I truly hated that word, as well as any other vulgar word. I didn't allow it to go without mention when Rosalie used and I certainly wouldn't with Bella.

"But she-"

"I don't want to hear it! You do not need to use such language to get your point across. Now I will ask you again. Do you understand?" I repeated.

"Yes sir," Bella said through gritted teeth.

I turned back to Rosalie who had a smirk on her face. I glared at her. I suggest you wipe that look off your face. I warned you against this, did I not? I told you that your attitude would not be tolerated anymore and I meant it! I don't believe for one second that you came in her out of concern for Bella. You came in here because you wanted to start a fight."

Rosalie turned her head away from me, proving that I was right.

"Go on, Jasper," I told my son.

"There's not really much else to tell. Emmett and I left. We stayed close enough so that we would hear if they started physically hurting each other. When we heard the banging, we rushed back in. Bella was on top of Rose. I pulled her off and Emmett grabbed Rose.

I glared at Bella. "What were you told about physical violence in this house just an hour ago?"

"But it's not my fault. She attacked me!" Bella yelled.

"Yeah, Bella, but what you said was out of line," Emmett said. He and Jasper had obviously heard the entire conversation. They were close enough that their enhanced hearing picked it up.

"And what she said to me wasn't?" Bella shot back.

"Alright, enough! I want everyone downstairs now!" I didn't know exactly what was said because my office was far enough away from Bella's room that my vampire hearing wouldn't have picked up on the actual conversation unless I was listening for it, but I had a pretty good idea of what the gist of it was, and if I was right, it was something that needed to be discussed with the entire family.

Emmett took Rosalie out of the room first. Then Bella and Jasper left. I followed them all out.


	23. Chapter 23

**Bella's POV**

We all gathered in the living room for a family meeting. I sat between Edward and Jasper on the couch. Rosalie, Emmett, and Alice were on the couch as well. Carlisle and Esme were seated on the love seat.

"I called this meeting because it seems Bella and Rosalie decided to get into a brawl," Carlisle said, sounding none too pleased.

Those that didn't already know, namely Edward, Alice, and Esme were shocked. Esme glared back and forth between the two of us. "Is that true?"

I bit my lip and looked down at my lap guiltily.

"It's her fault, if she had just shut up none of this-"

I looked over at Rosalie and glared. "My fault? You're the one who came into my room, without an invitation I might add, and-"

"Enough!" Carlisle bellowed. "No one is speaking right now but me. Is that clear?"

We all nodded.

"Good. Now normally this is something I'd handle with Rosalie and Bella alone, but I get the feeling that the fight itself isn't the real problem here. Am I right?" Carlisle asked.

"I don't have a problem with Rose. She's the one who has a problem with me! I'm sick of having to deal with it," I blurted out. I hadn't meant to blurt out like that, but it just came out, and it was the truth. I'd been putting up with Rosalie's crap since I met the Cullens. I put up with it when I was human because it wasn't really my family, and because I was kind of afraid of Rosalie. But now all that was over. This was my house now too. Didn't I deserve the same respect everyone else did?

"Then leave. That would certainly solve my problems," Rosalie said with a smirk on her face.

"Why don't you shut the hell up?" Edward asked angrily.

"You shut up! This is your fault. You're the one who brought her into our lives in the first place. Everything was just fine until then," Rosalie said.

"Rosalie, that's enough!" Esme said firmly. "You will not speak that way about any member of this family. Is that understood? Bella is just as much a member of this family as anyone else here and she will be treated as such.

"Something I have already told you once already. I told you that you were to treat Bella and every other member of this family with respect, didn't I? Yet you chose to ignore me. But we'll get to that later. Right now I feel it is important for us to deal with the reasons behind the animosity," Carlisle added.

"I can give you the reason right now. She's jealous," Edward said.

"Oh, like I'd really be jealous of that," Rosalie said sarcastically while glancing at me in disgust.

"But you are. You're jealous as hell. It comes off you in waves," Jasper said.

"Okay, that's enough all of you. We don't need you all adding fuel to the fire," Esme said.

"Alright, first things first. I want to know exactly what was said before the two of you lost your heads and started attacking each other," Carlisle said.

I looked away from him and refused to answer. I knew that my father was not going to be impressed with what I said to Rosalie right before she attacked me. Hell, I wasn't impressed with it either. I was already starting to regret my words. I'd only said it because I wanted to hurt her like her words had been hurting me. I wanted her to see how it felt.

Rosalie seemed to having similar trouble because she wouldn't speak either.

"Either the two of you will tell me what happened. Or I will ask Jasper and Emmett, seeing as they seemed to hear the whole thing. It's up to you," Carlisle said.

Once again, Rosalie and I remained silent.

"Very well. Boys?"

"It got ugly. Without going into great detail, Rose called Bella a mistake that you were forced to deal with and Bella brought up how you only changed Rose for Edward, insinuating that you don't really care about her," Jasper said.

Carlisle looked at both of us with an appalled look on his face. "Is that true?"

I kept my mouth shut, as did Rosalie.

"Is that true!" Carlisle practically screamed.

"Yes sir," we both said at the same time.

"I am very disappointed in both of you. Neither one of those things are truly. And I'm sure that you each know that things that you each said respectively weren't true. You only said them because you wanted to get a rise out of each other. Am I right?"

I nodded. I did know that. I knew that while what I said to Rose might have been true, the implication I was making was not.

"I will get to your appalling behavior later. Right now, I want you to understand something. I want you _all_ to understand it. No one in this family is loved more than the other. Rosalie, you and I have touched on this issue before, but apparently I didn't do a very good job at convincing you. For that, I apologize. While it's true that I did turn you in hopes of you mating with Edward, it's not a decision I regret. You are my daughter, just as Alice and Bella are. I love you just as much as I do them. I love all of you the same," Carlisle told us.

Jasper raised his hand a little and Carlisle turned to him, motioning for him to speak. "It's just that it doesn't always seem that way. Sometimes it seems like you do favor some over the rest of us, especially Edward. Until recently, you always seemed to curve to his every whim. Even when he demanded that we all leave Forks, and I realize that that was mostly my fault, but still.

L head Edward gasp in shock next to me. He obviously hadn't seen that one coming. He must not have come to the same conclusion Jasper had. The other Cullen kids seemed to though. None of my other siblings seemed that shocked either. They seemed to agree with Jasper. Honestly, I did too to a certain extent. In Forks, it always seemed like Edward could do no wrong in Carlisle's eyes. Though at the time, I didn't think he could either, so I kinda agreed with him.

Carlisle looked stricken. Like until then, he hadn't realized how gravely he messed up. "D...Do you all feel that way?"

"Sometimes, yeah," Emmett said.

"Definitely," Rosalie said.

Alice just nodded. I did as well a little.

Carlisle was visibly upset. Not at us, but at the fact that he didn't realize what he'd been doing.

Jasper seemed to realize how upset our father was and started to apologize. "Dad, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you." It was one of the rare times I ever heard any of my siblings refer to Carlisle as 'dad'.

"It is I who should apologize, Jasper. And I want to thank you for bringing this to my attention. I didn't realize I did that. I am sorry to all of you. That is not fair to any of you," Carlisle said.

"I didn't realize either. I'm sorry, Carlisle," Edward said.

"You have nothing to apologize for. This is on me. I have failed you just as much as the rest of them," Carlisle said sadly.

I wanted to do something to comfort my father, but Jasper beat me too it. "You didn't fail us. I didn't mean to make it sound like that. I just wanted you to know why some of us feel like you favor others over the rest of us."

"No, I'm glad you told me, Jasper. I needed to hear it," he said somberly.

"I didn't know this either. I'm sorry. We should've been paying better attention," Esme said guiltily.

"That's why I resent Bella so much. Because when Edward hurt her, yeah, he was taken off his pedestal, but she was put on it," Rosalie said bitterly.

I glanced over at her. I was starting to see the issue. Edward and Jasper were right. It was jealously. She felt like I was taking her place in the family. "Rosalie, I'm not trying to take anyone's place. I don't want to be put up on some pedestal. I don't think it's any place I'd want to be. I just want to find my own place her. For so many years, I felt like I didn't belong, even in my own family. I loved Charlie and Renee, but they weren't real parents. It was like I was taking care of them, not the other way around. That's why I felt so much at ease here. I could be the kid in this family. I finally felt like I had real parents."

Rosalie just looked at me for a minute. "I know what you mean."

"I didn't mean what I said to you. You're just as much a part of this family as I am. It's ironic that you feel like you mean less than I do because I feel the same way about you, about all of you, and I really do feel like you're right about me being a mistake sometimes," I told her before looking down.

"You're not. Like you, I only said that to get a rise out of you. I knew it wasn't true. Carlisle loves you. He doesn't care how you got here or who your mother is. No one here does. Not even me," Rosalie said.

I looked at her in surprise. For the first time I actually believed those words fully when they were spoken to me. For some reason I hadn't until I'd heard them from Rosalie. It was probably because I knew she wouldn't say them just to appease me.

"Alright. A lot has been said here tonight. A lot that needed to be said. I think it would be best if we all took some time to think about it all. However, I will promise each and every one of you right now that the mistakes I've made thus far will not be repeated. I know you may not believe that right now, but I will make sure to prove it in the future. I hope you will all give me that chance," Carlisle said. It was clear that what he did was still upsetting him.

We all nodded that we would give him that chance.

"Alright, you may all go," he said. We all then got up and went our separate ways.


	24. Chapter 24

**Carlisle's POV**

I'd never felt like more of a failure than I did in this very moment. I was completely blindsided by Jasper's announcement that I favored Edward over everyone else. I never thought I did that until now. But now that I knew, I was forced to look back and reevaluate myself as a father.

The most important lesson that every parent needed to learn was to never favor one child over another. Yet I'd done just that. It wasn't intentional. I didn't even realize I'd done it until today. When I thought back, I did see the differences in the way I treated Edward as opposed to the rest of them. I never mistreated my other children and I didn't love them any less than the others, but I placed more faith and more responsibility in Edward. That wasn't right. Not to the rest of them and not to Edward.

I'd failed as a father. The one job that I wasn't supposed to screw up at and it was the one that I'd screwed up the most. I had to find a way to fix. If there was even a way. Could I make this better? Was it too late now?

"Carlisle, stop," Esme said from her place next to me on the couch. She could obviously sense what I was thinking.

"I'm a failure, Esme. I failed every one of our children," I said without even looking at her.

"You are not a failure, Carlisle. You made a mistake. We both did. I didn't see it anymore than you did," Esme said

"How could I have let this happen? How could I have not seen what I was doing? All this time, I called that meeting tonight because I was beginning to worry that the others were starting to feel less loved because of my relation to Bella. Little did I know that they felt that way long before Bella came into our lives. And it was my own doing," I said before burying my head in my hands.

"It was our doing. I carry just as much blame as you. No one's perfect, Carlisle. Not even us," Esme said.

"I just don't understand why I did it. I put so much faith in Edward's opinions. As if they were law. As Rosalie said, I placed him on a pedestal, and that wasn't fair to him or the other children. I gave him the leeway to do the things he did and think he could get away with them," I said. I saw things so clearly now. I never would've allowed anyone else to talk me into leaving Forks the way Edward did. I would've seen the manipulation a mile away. But for some reason, with Edward, I just let him do it, and in doing so, I'd caused my entire family pain.

"I think the reason you put so much stock in Edward's word is because for a long time, it was just the two of you. And I'm not saying that's an excuse because there is no excuse. We made mistake. We didn't see what we were doing. We should've. But we can't dwell on it now. Right now, all we can do is try to make it right," Esme said before placing a hand on my shoulder.

I looked over at my wife. "What if it's too late? What if the damage has already been done?"

"Well, that's the good thing about being what we are. We have eternity to figure out how to fix things," Esme said.

I nodded. She was right. She just had to be. I couldn't accept that things had been irreparably damaged. There had to be a way to make things up to my children. There just had to be.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

**Edward's POV**

I was in my room trying desperately not to think about the conversation we all just had downstairs when I heard a knock on my door. I assumed it was Carlisle. "Come in."

I was surprised when Bella entered the room. I sat up from my bed almost instantly. "Hey. Um, maybe you shouldn't be here. I'm not entirely sure I'm allowed to have visitors." I assumed I was still being punished for this weekend's debacle and I didn't want Bella to get in trouble. Though truthfully, I don't think Carlisle even has it in him to punish anyone. He was too busy punishing himself for everything that had just been revealed.

"Yeah, well, I'll risk it," Bella said as she closed the door behind her. She then came over and sat down next to me. "Are you okay?"

I was quiet for a minute before I found my voice. "Are they right? Does Carlisle really favor me?"

Bella hesitated in answering me. "I don't think he does it intentionally, but I think he does put a lot of stock in the things you say, and I think somewhere inside you know that. That's how you knew he'd agree when you asked him to leave."

She wasn't mean or bitter about it, just very honest. And she was probably right. When I really thought about it, I did know that Carlisle would take my word for it when I asked him to leave. I little manipulation was it would've taken. Still, it hit hard to have to finally admit to myself that I was favored over the others. I didn't want my brothers and sisters to feel like they came in second to me. I would never want to cause them that type of pain.

"I also think that's partially why you screwed up so badly. I think you subconsciously wanted to fall off the high horse that Carlisle accidently put you on," Bella said.

I shook my head. "No, I did what I did to protect you, and I know now that it was wrong, but at the time, I did think I was doing the right thing."

"Oh, I'm sure that you were trying to protect me, no matter how stupid and misguided it was. However, I don't think it was your only reason, and it certainly wasn't your reason for continuing to push your limits with Carlisle. I think you wanted to see how much he would let you get away with before reining you in," Bella explained.

I laughed. "Well, I guess I have my answer to that, don't I? Whether I wanted to or not, I did find the limit to Carlisle's patience."

Bella chuckled along with me. "That you did.

I started to get serious again. "Well, you're right about one thing. I don't want to be on a pedestal."

"No, it's not a great place to be, is it? It seems like a lot of pressure to me."

"I don't want to be the guy everybody hates either," I told her.

"Everybody doesn't hate you, Edward. Yeah, you kinda pissed everyone off, but we don't hate you. I for one could never hate you and I know the others couldn't either," Bella told me.

"Are you sure? I mean, even if they don't hate me for the things I did, surely they must hate me for being what they consider to be the favorite," I said.

"I won't say they're not resentful because they probably are a little, but they don't hate you. They never could. They're your family," she assured me.

I smiled. I knew there was a reason I loved this girl. She always knew what to say to make me feel better, even when I didn't deserve it. I didn't deserve her compassion right now, but she was giving it to me anyway. It just made me love her all that much more.

I leaned forward a little, as did Bella. Before I knew it, our faces were inches apart. _'Oh, screw it,' _I thought before gently pressing my lips against hers and kissing her passionately.

Bella kissed me back at first, but after a minute or two, she pulled away. "No, I can't do this, not now. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry, Bella. I shouldn't have done that," I told her. I was an idiot. I should've known she wouldn't be ready yet. It had only been a day since she told me she wanted to take things slow.

"No, it's okay. I'm just not ready yet. I can't just jump right back into a relationship with you. I need to be able to trust you first, and I'm just not there yet," Bella said.

"I understand. I'll wait as long as you need me too," I told her. And I would. I would wait from now until the rest of eternity for her.

Bella nodded gratefully. "Well, I better go before someone does notice I'm in here. Even Jasper and Emmett would freak out if they knew I was in here alone with you ."

I smiled. "Only because they love you."

She returned the smile. "I'll see you later." With that, she left my room.


	25. Chapter 25

**Bella's POV**

I found myself in my room getting ready for a hunting/camping trip with my brothers and sisters. It had been about two months since that day we had that family meeting. We'd all managed to keep our noses clean since then, including Edward. Edward was slowly but surely gaining trust back with everyone. Ever since that day, he did everything that Carlisle asked without complaint and had stayed out of trouble for the most part.

Edward and I had also gotten a lot closer. We still weren't back together, but we were getting there. I knew Edward and I would eventually make it back all the way. We were mates after all, and despite the fact that Edward had hurt me a lot, my love for him never wavered. My respect and trust did some, but never my love.

I was pulled from my thoughts by a knock at the open door of my room. I looked over and saw that it was Alice. "Are you ready?"

"We're really going hunting this time, right?" I asked with a quirked eyebrow.

Alice shuttered from my reminder of what had been dubbed by Emmett 'the unfortunate incident'. Carlisle's wrath had not been kind to her or Edward then. "Let's not even think about that. It took me forever to get Carlisle to trust me again.

"Not as long as it's taking Edward," I commented. It had been a long road so far for Carlisle and Edward, almost as long as for Edward and me, and like with me, while Carlisle was starting to gain more trust in Edward, they still had a ways to go. "Anyway, yeah, I'm ready. Let's go."

We both went downstairs where Emmett, Jasper, Rosalie, and Edward were waiting. Edward being there ready to go surprised me. He wasn't allowed to go with us. He was still heavily grounded. "Carlisle taking you hunting Edward?"

"I guess so. He just told me to go get ready to hunt," Edward said. He seemed just as confused as I was about it.

As if on cue, Carlisle came into the room seconds later. "I see you're all ready to go. Jasper, I don't think I need to tell you that you should keep a close eye on Bella. Her control has gotten better, but let's not take any chances."

"Yes, sir, I understand," Jasper said.

I grumbled a little. I hated having to be watched like this. It made me feel like a little kid. In vampire world I supposed I was. I supposed that was why they called us newborns. It didn't make me hate any less though.

"It won't be for much longer, Bella. Just until the newborn period is over. You know how important this is," Carlisle said.

I sighed loudly and nodded. "I know."

Carlisle's eyes shifted to Edward. "You will be on your best behavior. Do you understand me?"

"What?" Edward asked in confusion. He obviously did not understand. But I did. Carlisle was loosening the reins and allowing Edward to come with us.

"He's letting you go, you moron," Rosalie said. She too had figured it out.

Edward's eyes grew with hope and he looked back at Carlisle. "Really? I can go?"

"Do not make me regret it this time, Edward. You too will be under Jasper's watch. If I hear anything from him..."

"You won't, I swear," Edward promised with a huge smile on his face. He was doing a good impression of Alice actually. He looked like he was ready to jump up and down.

Emmett laughed. "Alright, Jumpy, let's get you out there before he changes his mind."

Edward didn't need to be told twice. He practically ran out the door. We all followed him with amused expressions on our faces.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

A few hours later, we were all done hunting for the day and we were setting up camp. No one really slept but me, but the others did enjoy time alone with their mates, so we had a few tents with us and I had a sleeping bag just in case I wanted to sleep.

I looked over to see Edward coming towards me. "Hey."

"Hi. Tired?" Edward asked.

"Eh, not really. Still, got nothing better to do. Unless you wanna come in and talk," I said. I could tell that was exactly what he wanted. That was why he'd come over in the first place.

"Yeah, sure," Edward said.

I led the way into the tent and Edward followed. We both sat down on the sleeping bag. "So how does it feel being out without Carlisle?"

"It feels great. I think I was gonna crawl out of my skin if I didn't get some freedom soon. Don't get me wrong, I know I deserved what I got, but it is nice to get out of the house without Carlisle for a while.

"Well, as long as you don't screw it up, I think you might get this more often," I told him."

"No, don't worry; I have no intention of screwing it up. It took me a while, but I've learned my lesson," Edward said.

"Have you?" I asked. I was no longer talking about Carlisle.

"I have, Love. I've done so many things lately that I regret. The biggest were the ones that hurt you. I thought I was protecting you, but I was wrong. I just hope one day you can forgive me," Edward said sadly.

"Believe it or not I have. It's trusting you that I have an issue with right now. I wanna be with you the way we used to, I do, but I need to be able to trust that it's not gonna be the way it was before," I told him. I could not deal with things being like that. Even before Edward left things were far from ideal. Edward thought he could dictate my life. I wouldn't live like that again.

"It won't, I promise," Edward said. There was hope etched into his face. He was obviously hoping I was on the verge of telling him I was ready to try again, which I kind of was.

"I'm not just talking about you leaving me. That was not the first time you made a decision for me, but it will be the last. This is my life and I am going to live it my way. If you want to give me advice, that's one thing, but the final decision is mine. I have a father already, I don't need another one," I said firmly.

Edward opened his mind to say something, but I didn't give him the chance. "No, Edward, I don't want to hear how you did it because you love me. I don't care. You do not have the right to decide what's best for me. I have that right, as do Carlisle and Esme to some extent. You do not. You need to wake up and realize that you are not in the 1920s anymore."

Edward nodded after a minute. "Okay. I understand."

"I hope that's true because this is your last chance, Edward. I won't be with someone who is going to control me, mate or not," I told him. While I knew that Edward and I would be together, I was going to make sure that he knew it wasn't going to be solely on his terms.

"Look, I can't promise that I'll always agree with your decisions, but I'll do my best to respect them," Edward said.

"I can live with that," I told him.

"So does this mean..."

I cut him off by kissing him. "Does that answer your question?"

Edward smiled and kissed me back.

"Don't you dare hold back," I told him in between kisses.

"I wasn't planning on it, Love," Edward said before kissing me.

I bent backwards laid down on the bed. Edward got on top of me and we continued to kiss passionately. After a minute though, Edward abruptly stopped. "What'd I just say?"

"Do you smell that?" Edward asked.

I sat up and took a whiff. I did smell something. It smelled like vampire, but it wasn't any vampire I knew.

"Stay here," Edward ordered. I gave him a withering glare and he winced. "Sorry. Old habits are hard to break.

"Come on, let's check it out," I said before leading the way out of the tent. When we got out there, the others were there as well. They'd obviously caught the scent as well.

"The scent smells vaguely familiar," Jasper said.

"Yeah, to me too, but I can't place it," Edward said.

Soon we all heard a rustling in the trees. Seconds later a vampire with dark hair and blood red eyes came out. "Hello, Cullen family."

Jasper tensed immediately. "Melinda."


	26. Chapter 26

**Bella's POV**

I gasped in shock when I heard what Jasper had called the woman. He called her Melinda. This woman was my mother. She was the one that had toyed with my family so long ago. The woman who had driven Jasper to the brink and pretty much raped Carlisle. The woman I had hoped to never meet.

I felt Edward's hand slip into mine and I squeezed it tightly. I needed his reassurance now more than ever before. I had no idea how to deal with this. How did you deal with the fact that the mother who gave you away, and who also tormented your family, was standing right in front of you?"

"What the hell are you doing here, Melinda?" Jasper asked in a tone I'd never heard from him before. There was so much coldness in his voice. Not that I blamed him. He had a right to it with this woman.

Melinda shrugged. "I was in the neighborhood and thought I'd stop by and say hi."

"So you have a death wish then? I believe our father made himself perfectly clear the last time you spoke," Alice said through gritted teeth. Like with Jasper, she was more angry than I'd even seen her.

Melinda chuckled. "Oh we did much more than talk."

I couldn't stop the growl from coming out as I thought about her 'time' with my father.

Melinda seemed to notice me my presence and he took a step towards me. "So the Cullens have picked up a new stray, have they?"

Edward took a protective stance in front of me. I didn't protest. I didn't want to be anywhere near this woman. I hated her for what she did to Carlisle and Jasper, and I hated that she was my mother. It made me sick just thinking about it.

"Such protectiveness, Eddie. But what could a newborn possibly fear from me?" Melinda asked.

"I'm not afraid of you," I finally spoke. I wasn't sure if I was trying to convince her or myself. While it was true I was afraid _of_ her. I was scared of the damage she could do to my family.

"Good for you. What's your name, Newborn?" Melinda asked me.

Edward snarled loudly. "Back off!"

"Well, aren't we touchy? I'm just making polite conversation," Melinda said.

"Polite? You don't know the meaning of the word. Now why don't you get lost before things get ugly?" Emmett asked.

"Is that a threat? It would be a very bad idea to threaten me," Melinda said coldly.

Rosalie growled in defense of her mate.

"Get lost, Melinda. You're not welcome here," Jasper said. He was a little calmer than he was a few minutes ago, but the coldness was still there.

Melinda brought her hand to her chest in mock pain. "That hurts, Jasper. I thought you enjoyed our time together. We had fun, didn't we?"

I growled once more. "Fun? You tricked him into turning against everything he believe in!"

"Bella, don't. It's alright," Jasper said.

"So it's Bella then. Tell me, Bella, how did you join the Cullen 'family'?" Melinda asked.

A part of me wanted to tell her. I wanted her to know who I was and that I hated her for what she did to my family and for the burden she left me with. She forced me to live every day knowing that my existence was solely because of the depraved act she'd committed against my father. I hated her for that and I wanted her to know it.

"Our family is none of your business," Alice said coldly.

"Oh, you have no idea how wrong you are," Melinda said smirking.

I frowned. Was that her way of alluding to my existence? Was that why she came here? To tell them about the fact that I existed and was a part of their family. She didn't know that they already knew about me, so she probably thought it would do a lot of damage for them to know.

Jasper took a confrontational step towards Melinda. "I'm going to give you one more chance to leave. Go now or you'll regret it."

"Oh, I'll go. But don't think it's over. We're going to play again real soon, Major," Melinda told Jasper.

"Oh, you can count on that," Jasper retorted. The threat implied was evident in his voice

Melinda chuckled and then ran into the trees.

"Bella, are you alright?" Jasper asked me.

"Yeah, I think so," I told him. Honestly I wasn't sure how true that was. I wasn't sure how I was at the moment.

"Are you sure? I'm getting a strong sense anxiousness from you," Jasper said.

"Of course I'm anxious. It's not every day that something like that happens!" I said exasperatedly. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright. I'd be on edge if I were you too. Hell, I am on edge," Jasper said

"Why is she here? What does she want?"

"Edward?" Jasper asked.

"She did think about a secret that she thinks will destroy us. I can only assume that's Bella. I think she thought about it on purpose though. She wants us curious and on edge.

"Well, if that's her plan, it'll obviously fail. You already know about me," I said.

Edward looked at me hesitantly. Like he had something to say, but didn't want to in front of me.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Edward, we just talked about the whole protection thing. You're not going to do this, you understand? What is it?"

"It's just that... she's curious about you. I think that whatever she tries is going to involve you," Edward said.

"Great," I said sarcastically. My crazy vampire mother was going to try to use me to rip apart my family. And here I thought things were bad when I started turning into a vampire.

"Let's just head back to the house. We need to tell Carlisle and Esme what's going on," Jasper said.

"That's just fine with me," I said. I didn't want to be there anymore. I wanted to go home.

We quickly packed everything up and headed back towards the house.


	27. Chapter 27

**Jasper's POV**

I followed Alice into our bedroom and slammed the door behind me. I was so angry that I could barely contain it. Why did that woman have to come back into our lives now? We were just starting to get back to being a real family after the last several months of hell. We'd all forgiven Edward and Bella was finally starting to feel secure with us. Now this happens.

I knew Melinda was going to try to mess with Bella. I just knew it. She didn't even have to know who Bella was. She would come after Bella simply because of what it would do to us.

"Carlisle and Esme should be home in ten minutes. They went hunting themselves," Alice said.

I didn't respond. I was too busy seething with anger.

"Jazz, are you okay?" Alice asked

I was quiet for several more seconds before I finally spoke again. "I could've killed her, Alice." I really could've. I could've ended Melinda's pathetic existence right there and nobody would've been able to stop me. Not that anyone would've.

"Then why didn't you?" Alice asked curiously.

"Because of Bella," I told her. Bella was the only reason I let Melinda live tonight. No matter how much Bella hated Melinda for what she'd done to this family, I knew that seeing her killed right in front of her would haunt her. I couldn't do that to my sister.

"I don't think Bella would've cared. She hates Melinda just as much as we do," Alice said.

"She might not have cared tonight, but eventually she would've. Seeing her own mother killed by her brother would've haunted her. It would've given her nightmares," I said. Bella wasn't like the rest of us. She could sleep. That gift would've turned into a curse if she'd had to watch Melinda die.

Soon we heard a knock at the door. "Come in," I said.

Edward entered the room seconds later.

"How's Bella?" I asked.

Edward shook his head sadly. "I don't know. She won't talk to me. She needs Carlisle I think."

"I think we all do," Alice said. And she was right. We all needed the support of our parents to get through this.

As if on cue, we all heard a car pull onto the property.

"Well, it looks like we get our wish. We better head downstairs. They see that we're home and they want to know why.

I nodded and led the way out of the room. Just as we did, Emmett and Rose came out as well. Bella joined us a second later and we all went downstairs.

Carlisle and Esme had just made in the door by the time we got downstairs. "Would someone like to tell us what is going on?" Carlisle asked.

"We need a family meeting, Carlisle," I told him. This was serious. It required us all to sit down and have a long talk about what had happened and where to go from here.

Carlisle led us all into the living room and we all sat down on the couch. "The floor is yours, Jasper. What is going on?"

"Something happened while we were out. We had just set up camp for the night when we caught a familiar scent," I told them. Carlisle and Esme shared a knowing look, telling me that they'd noticed while they were out as well.

"You caught her scent too," Edward said, obviously reading their minds.

Carlisle nodded. "Yes, but we couldn't quite place it. Since you said 'her', I'm going to assume that means you crossed paths with this nomad."

"Unfortunately," Bella whispered. Of course we all heard her.

Edward took ahold of Bella's hand and held it tightly in comfort. "It's going to be okay, Love."

Carlisle looked at Bella and then glanced at the rest of us, taking in all of our facial expressions. I didn't need Edward's power or even my own to know that he had figured it out for himself.

"It's Melinda, isn't it?" he asked.

We all nodded. I then felt Carlisle's anger rise above any level I'd ever felt from him. He managed to keep himself composed though, just like he always did. Still, feeling so much anger from him made me feel a little uneasy. "Carlisle, you're making me a bit uncomfortable. May I?" I knew my father would be angry if I manipulated his feelings without his consent.

Carlisle nodded. "I'd appreciate it, son."

I immediately sent my father a few calming waves. He was still angry of course, but it was dealable now.

Carlisle sighed. "Thank you, Jasper. Now tell us what happened?"

We told them everything. I relayed every word Melinda spoke and Edward told them everything he'd heard in her mind.

"So you're sure she doesn't know about Bella?" Carlisle asked.

"She didn't seem to, no. I suppose she could've and was just really good at hiding it, but I don't think so. She is coming after us though. Her thoughts were real clear about that and purposely son. She wants us to know she's going to come at us again," Edward explained.

"And she wants to use me to do it," Bella said quietly.

Carlisle looked at her. "That won't happen, Bella, I promise you."

"You can't promise that, Carlisle. Not unless..."

"Unless what?" Carlisle asked.

"Unless you kill her. Which I have to say would be okay with me," Bella said with pure hatred in her voice.

"You don't know what you're saying, Bella," I told her as I sent wave after wave of calming. I did not like the feelings she was sending me, even if they were about someone as evil as Melinda. I didn't want my sister feeling that kind of emotion.

Bella glared at him and put her shield up, preventing my power from reaching her. "Knock it off, Jasper! I don't need you calming me. I know exactly what I'm saying. And don't tell me you haven't thought too. That you all haven't. You want her dead, I know you do. And you can't tell me you have an aversion to destroying someone that comes after us. James would still be alive if you did."

"This is different and you know it. You're right, I do hate and I could've very easily killed her tonight," I told her.

"Then why didn't you? We'd all be free of it all," Bella said angrily. I knew she wasn't really angry at me, just at the situation.

"Because I know what it would've eventually done to you. I know you hate her, Bella, but she is still technically your mother and if I had killed her tonight, you would've carried that with you forever," I told her.

"Alright, enough," Carlisle intervened. "I think we all need to table this conversation for tonight. All our emotions are very high right now. I think we all need some time to ourselves to try to think things through."

"Fine with me," Bella said before getting up and leaving the room.

Edward immediately followed Bella out and the rest followed suit soon after. Pretty soon it was just me and Carlisle. "Did I do the wrong thing? Should I have killed her?" I knew I sounded like a child seeking his father's approval, but I just couldn't be sure anymore if I'd made the right choice. If I had killed Melinda, she wouldn't be out there planning to wreak havoc on our family. I know it would've caused Bella pain eventually, but at least she'd be safe now.

Carlisle shook his head. "No. You were right about Bella. It would've eventually haunted her if she'd seen you kill her. But Bella is also right. We may not have any choice but to destroy Melinda."

I nodded. "I know."


	28. Chapter 28

**Bella's POV**

It had been nearly a week since our little run-in with my psycho biological mother. It had also been just as long since any of us hunted. While that wasn't a big issue for the others yet, it was for me. The rest of my family could go weeks without hunting if they had to, but as Carlisle keeps telling me, I'm still a newborn. That meant I needed to hunt at least every few days. Unfortunately, with Melinda out there, my father was reluctant to allow us to go out knowing what she had already done to this family.

That morning, I walked down stairs and to the kitchen. Edward was there putting a plate of eggs and bacon on the table. It was obviously for me. No one else in the family ate human food.

Edward soon noticed my presence. He turned to me and gave me a forced smile. He wasn't too happy about the situation either. No one was really. "Hey, Love. I made you some breakfast."

"Unless it comes with a bright red beverage, I don't want it," I grumbled before heading to the table. Once I sat down, I pushed the plate away from me. I did crave human food sometimes, but now was not one of them. The only thing I wanted right now was an animal to drink.

Edward sighed and sat next to me. "I know you're thirsty."

"What was your first clue? The black as coal eyes?" I asked sarcastically. One thing about vampires is that when we haven't fed in a while, it makes us irritable. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. We're all thirsty. Carlisle says we're going to go tonight," Edward said.

"Oh, thank God," I said. I wasn't sure how much longer I could go. Even waiting until tonight seemed like an impossible length of time.

"The thing is we have to go together. All of us. Carlisle doesn't want us separating," Edward said.

"Great, so we're just going to let this evil woman run our lives," I said unhappily. I knew I should just be glad to go hunting, and I was, but I didn't like how we were all being forced to change our lifestyle.

"I know it seems like we're being overcautious, but you have to understand how dangerous Melinda is. The damage she did to our family, and in particular to Jasper, nearly destroyed us all," Edward said seriously.

"All the more reason to end the situation now. Make her go away once and for all," I said.

"You don't mean that," Edward told me.

I growled angrily. Everyone kept saying that and I wished they would just stop. How would they know what I wanted? They didn't know what I was thinking, not even Edward. I meant what I was saying. I wanted her gone for good.

Before I got the chance to express my thoughts to Edward, we heard a knock at the door. "Who could that be?"

"Only one way to find out. Stay here in case it's a human," Edward told me before going to get the door.

I doubted it was a human. Humans never came to the house. But I stayed up anyway. If it was a human, it was best for me to be as far away as possible. As I said before, I was extremely thirsty and being around humans would certainly not help. I couldn't be near humans on a normal day without having the urge to bite, let alone one where my throat burned insanely.

Soon I heard Edward growl angrily. "What do you want?" he was asking angrily.

I knew immediately who it was and headed towards them. Sure enough, when I got to the entryway, Melinda was there with Edward.

"Nice to see you too, Eddie. It's good to see you," Melinda said as she stroked his cheek.

I let out a loud growl and was over to them in less than a second glaring at Melinda hatefully. How dare she touch Edward like that? Had she not done enough to Carlisle and Jasper? Did she really think she could get her claws into Edward? "Keep your filthy hands off my mate!"

Melina smirked at me. "Well, if it isn't the newborn again. It's Bella, right? I don't think we were properly introduced. I'm Melinda. A dear, dear friend of the Cullens."

"I know who you are, and it's no friend," I told her with a glare.

"What do you want, Melinda?" Edward asked again.

"I came to speak to your 'father'," She used finger quotes when she said the word 'father' in regards to Carlisle and then pushed her way into our house. "So where is he? Is he home?"

"Why? Are you anxious for him to destroy you?" Edward asked.

"I know I am," I said in a low voice. They both heard me of course.

Melinda looked at me. "Now that's not very nice. What did I ever do to you, Newborn?"

I growled at her just thinking about what she did.

"Quite the temper there. Is it because you're a newborn or is it the thirst. You look very thirsty, dear," Melinda taunted.

"Back off!" Edward growled.

Melinda ignored him and continued to smile at me evilly. "When's the last time you fed? You look like you could use a good meal. And not that disgusting excuse for food your 'family' prefers. Tell me, have you ever had human blood? You should try it. You have no idea how amazing it is. There's nothing like it."

As if her taunts weren't enough to drive me insane, I soon began to smell the oh so sweet aroma of human blood. I couldn't seem to find the source though. I looked around to find it. I wanted it. It was uncontrollable. Where was it coming from.

Edward suddenly got extremely angry. He grabbed Melinda by the neck and slammed her against the wall. "Stop it! You will not play games with her!"

Soon we all heard several footsteps charge our way followed by Carlisle's voice. "What's going on?"

"She charged in, Carlisle. She's done something to Bella," Edward was saying. I barely heard him though. I was too distracted by the agony of my throat and the irresistible smell.

"What have you done to my daughter?" Carlisle was asking.

Jasper, meanwhile had come over to me and grabbed ahold of my shoulders. "Bella, look at me."

"I need to find it, Jasper. I need it," I told him desperately. I needed to find the human. I knew there was one there somewhere. There had to be. I could smell it clear as day.

"What, Bella? What do you need?" Jasper asked him.

"The human. It's here. Can't you smell it?" I asked my brother. How could he not smell it? It was the most amazing smell in the world. He had to smell it too.

Jasper let out a small growl and moved his hands up to the sides of my face. "Bella, listen to me. There are no humans here."

"Yes, there are! I'm not crazy, Jazz, I smell it!" I said loudly. Why couldn't he see? Why didn't he feel what I did?

"Jasper, just get her out of here," Rosalie was saying.

"I know what I'm doing!" Jasper told her sharply before turning back to me. "Bella, I know you're not crazy. I know how you're feeling right now. You think you know what's happening and everyone else has lost it. I know that feeling. She's doing it. It's an illusion, okay? She's messing with your head. Now I need you to calm down and put up your shield."

"I can't. I need it," I said desperately. I heard him, but I couldn't really comprehend it. The only thing I could focus on was my thirst and the sweet scent circling all around me.

"Bella, listen to Jasper." I looked over to see that my father had come over to me.

"I…I…

"Put up your shield, Bella. Just do it. It'll all be better once your shield is up," Jasper told me.

This time I managed to comprehend Jasper's words. He wanted me to put my shield up. I concentrated as hard as I could and managed to it up. Once I did, the amazing smell was gone. "I…It's gone."

"That's because it wasn't real. She messed with you," Jasper said through gritted teeth. It was clear he angry on my behalf.

I looked around to see my entire family nearby. All of their faces had a mixture of concern and anger on them. Carlisle's face was particularly furious. He was glaring daggers at Melinda. It looked like he could actually kill her.

My father's anger didn't compare to mine though. I wanted to rip her apart. "You bitch! Who the hell do you think you are?!" I yelled as I attempted to lunge at her. Jasper held me back though.

"Everyone, go hunting," Carlisle told us all as he continued to glare at Melinda. It was clear to me that he wanted us to go so that he could be alone to deal with Melinda. And with her there, he didn't have to worry about her coming after us.

Jasper pulled me towards the door with him.

"This isn't over," I growled at Melinda before leaving with Jasper. The others followed behind us.


	29. Chapter 29

**Carlisle's POV**

I watched as my children all left to go hunting. Esme followed them. I of course assumed she was leaving with them, but instead she closed the door behind them and turned back to me. "Esme…"

"Don't even try it, Carlisle. It's not going to happen," Esme said firmly while giving me a look I knew all too well. It was her 'don't you dare argue with me' look.

I sighed. I really wanted her to leave. I didn't want anyone around me while I dealt with Melinda because I knew this meeting would not portray my best qualities. I was already enraged that this woman dared come back after the agony she'd caused Jasper, but now she actually mad the nerve to mess with Bella's mind, make her go insane with thirst by making her think a human was in the room. It was enough to make me want to tear the poor excuse for a woman limb from limb. That wasn't something I wanted Esme to see. But it appeared to be inevitable, as my wife would not leave my side.

Melinda smiled at me. "Hello, Carlisle. Long time no see."

"Not nearly long enough," I said through gritted teeth.

Melinda continued as though I never spoke. "How long has it been? Eighteen, nineteen years?"

"What do you want, Melinda?" I asked impatiently. I was not going have small talk with the woman who came dangerously close to destroying my family.

"Just thought I'd catch up with an old friend," Melinda said.

A low growl escaped my lips. "You are no friend of mine. I wouldn't consider someone who toys with my son's self-control for her own perverse pleasure or who torments my daughter with her thirst a friend!"

Melinda shrugged. "It's not my fault you were forcing the newborn to starve."

This time the growl I let was loud. It was indeed her fault! I had been hesitant to allow my children to go off on another hunting trip because I didn't want her somehow getting to one of them. That was how she'd gotten to Jasper the last time. He had been alone and susceptible to her mind games. Lord only knew what would've happened if Bella had been by herself when Melinda messed with her today. "You are playing with fire here, Melinda. I thought I made myself perfectly clear the last time we spoke, or did you forget."

Melinda smirked. "Oh, I remember our last meeting real well.

Esme hissed and made her way to my side, all the while glaring daggers at Melinda. "You mean your last attempt to destroy our family? It didn't work. You may have coerced my husband into bed, but it has had no lasting effects. Our family is stronger than ever."

Melinda laughed, it was mocking laugh. "Oh, yes, you even picked yourself up a newborn. Tell me, how long do you think it'll be before she turns from your lifestyle? Before she decided to act like a real vampire? Maybe I'll show her the way."

That was all it took. The idea of this being anywhere near Bella filled me with fury and hatred. I grabbed her by the throat and slammed her against the wall. "You stay away from my daughter! If you go anywhere near her, I will make good on my promise to kill you!"

Melinda appeared to be unaffected by my words. "You? Come on, Carlisle. You who can't even bring yourself to feed like a real vampire is supposed to and you think you can bring yourself to kill me?"

"Make no mistake about it, Melinda, there is a limit to my compassion and my patients," I warned steely. Honestly, I knew I should end it right then and there. I was breaking not only a promise to myself by not doing it, but to Jasper as well. But when I thought of killing her, I saw Bella's face. What kind of man was I if I killed my daughter's mother, even if the connection was just a technical one? Would she ever forgive me if I did such a thing? I knew she said she wanted her dead now, but it could become much different if that wish became reality. If I had to, I would kill Melinda, but I preferred not to.

"Tell us what you want, Melinda. Tell us and then get out of our lives once and for all," Esme said.

"Do you remember our night, Carlisle? Do you remember how amazing it was?" Melinda asked.

I felt Esme stiffen next to me, but otherwise, she showed no reaction. I followed her example.

"Something came out of that night. Something that neither of us could ever imagine," Melinda said.

"Get to the point," I ordered, my strong hand still wound tightly around her neck. I knew where she was going with it, but Melinda didn't need to know that.

"You have a daughter," Melinda said.

I was slightly shocked that she gave it up so easily, but didn't show it. It was probably just part of her game. "Yes, I know, I have three. But thank you for stating the obvious."

"No, I don't the vampires in your coven that you insist in treating like family. I mean a flesh and blood daughter. We have a daughter."

"If this is an attempt to save yourself, surely you can come up with something better than such an obvious lie," I said pretending not to believe her. I didn't want her to know that I knew about Bella. I was trying to keep her away from Bella, not draw her to her.

"It's true."

"You think you can come back her after all these years and continue to play games with me? Well it's not going to happen. Now get out of my house and stay away from my family. If you come back, I will make good on my promise," I told her before dragging her to the front door and pushing her out the door. I then slammed the door in her face.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

**Jasper's POV**

I had gone with Bella while she hunted. She had still been very wound up when we got to the forest and since I was the best at dealing with newborns, it was best for me to be the one with her. Also, I understood how she was feeling right now better than any of the others.

Edward had wanted to stay with Bella, but I convinced him that he needed to hunt himself. His eyes were dark as well. He needed both to feed and to run so that he could let out some of the aggression that was pouring off of him.

Bella fed on a couple of deer before stopping and sitting down on a large rock.

"Bella, you need to keep hunting," I told her. She hadn't fed nearly enough. Her eyes were still as black as they came. While some of that was probably due to anger, a lot of it was thirst.

"I just need a minute, okay?" Bella asked.

I walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It feels like you've been violated, doesn't it? Like someone reached into your brain and used your biggest weakness against you. I know how you feel."

"It felt so real, Jazz. The odor was so intense. I could swear there was a human in the room with me," Bella said.

"I know. She gets into your head like nobody else can. She knows what buttons to push. She saw how thirsty you were and she knew you were a newborn, so she used it all against you. I'm just grateful it happened at the house instead of our here," I told her. If it had happened out in the woods and she was alone, she would've gone hunting for humans. She wouldn't have been able to help herself. The thirst would've just been too much for her.

"Oh, God. If there had been a human even nearby, there's no way I would've been able to stop myself," Bella said.

"I know. I know because I couldn't stop myself," I said somewhat guiltily. I still felt kind of guilty for the human I killed back then. Yes, I was tricked, but I should've known better. I should've known Carlisle would never condone it and that Alice would never bite a human even if he did.

Bella could apparently sense my guilt. "Jasper, she dangled a human in front of you and took the first bite. How could you possibly resist after that?"

"I know. I guess I just feel like I should've realized before that that it was a trick," I told her.

"I didn't realize. Today, when she did it to me, I didn't figure it out. She was right in front of me and I knew what she could do, but I still thought it was real. I guess she's just that good at it," Bella said.

I was about to respond when I heard Alice's voice in the distance.

"Everyone get over here!" she called out to us.

Bella and I immediately got up and raced to her. She ran a few miles distance and found Alice and the others on one of the cliffs.

I immediately went over to my wife. "What's wrong, Darlin'?"

"She had a vision," Edward said. His face was very grim. He'd obviously seen the vision in Alice's mind.

"What did you see?" I asked my wife encouragingly.

"Melinda. She's going to find Bella. Well, okay, she doesn't know she's looking for Bella. She's looking her for her daughter so she can use her to mess with Carlisle," Alice said.

"Okay, but that's not gonna work. Even if she finds out Bella is with us, she can't use her to hurt us. We won't let her," Emmett said.

Alice shook her head. "No, you don't understand. Melinda knows where Bella was born. She's going to Forks."


	30. Chapter 30

**Bella's POV**

About an hour later, we were all sitting around the living room. We had rushed back as soon as Alice had her vision about Melinda going to Forks to find me. Needless to say, I was quite upset. Melinda would not find me there. All she would find was my very human adoptive father.

What if Melinda went after Charlie? What if she killed him? She had made it perfectly clear she no problem hurting people. And that was just vampire. God only knew what she'd do to a human.

"Are you sure, Alice?" Carlisle asked.

Alice nodded. "She decided to go right after leaving here. Her mind's made up."

"Can we stop her? Cut her off at the pass?" Jasper asked.

Alice shook her head no. "She's already left and she masked her scent with her gift just in case we decided to follow her wherever she was going. She wants to bombard us with Bella."

Emmett snorted. "Well, that's obviously not going to work."

Rosalie glared at her husband. "Shut up, moron, this isn't funny."

Emmett held his hands up in surrender. "Hey, I'm just trying to ease the tension."

"Carlisle we have to do something. She'll hurt Charlie!" I said frantically. I loved Carlisle very much, but I loved Charlie too. I couldn't let anything happen to my other father.

Edward covered my hand with his. "It's okay, love. We won't let anything happen to Charlie.

Carlisle looked at Alice. "Alice?" It was clear he was asking if there was a viable threat to Charlie.

Alice focused her eyes and went into the trance-like state she always slipped into when she went into a vision. After a few minutes, she came out of it and shook her head. "She hasn't decided yet."

"We have to go back. We have to stop her," Jasper said.

"Hang on, let's think about this a second. If we go to Forks, we'll be putting ourselves at a greater risk. We'll be drawing attention to ourselves. Is that really what we want? Bella, I'm sorry, but we have to think about the good of the family," Rosalie said. She did seem to really be sorry, but that did make me any less angry at her for saying it.

"Charlie is my family too!" I yelled at her.

"Bella, calm down. We're not going to let Melinda hurt Charlie," Carlisle assured me. He then turned to Rosalie. "Rosalie, I understand what you're saying, but Melinda is our problem. We can't allow her to hurt anyone."

"So then we're going back?" Edward asked.

Carlisle nodded. "We have no choice. I won't allow Charlie or anyone else to get hurt because of Melinda's quest to torture our family. We will go back and we will stop her once and for all."

"Oh, please tell me that means what I think it means," Emmett begged.

Carlisle nodded once more and looked at me with apologetic eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't want it to come to this."

"I did," I told him bluntly. I didn't want this scenario obviously, but I certainly wanted Melinda out of our lives forever. "So when do we leave?"

Edward grimaced next me and looked at Carlisle. Obviously he'd caught something in our father's mind.

"What?" I asked.

"I'm sorry, Bella, but _we_ won't be going. You're going to stay here with Esme. And when I say that, I don't mean that you can follow us once we're gone," Carlisle said sternly.

"What?" I asked in horror. He couldn't be serious. He couldn't really leave me here while they all went off to face this psycho.

"Bella, you can't go. We faked your death, remember? There will be more than a few raised eyebrows if you suddenly turn up alive and well," Jasper said.

"So I'll stay away from anyone I know," I said.

"That's everyone, Bella. It's a small town and you were the police chief's daughter," Alice said.

"Fine, I'll stay in the house. I won't go out. I just can't sit here while everyone else is a thousand miles away.

"You can and you will. I'm sorry, Bella, but this is non-negotiable," Carlisle said firmly.

"No, you can't do this! I'm going. You can't stop me!" I yelled.

The room became eerily quiet. Everyone looked at me with shocked expressions on their faces. Hell, I was shocked too. I'd never yelled at Carlisle like that before.

Carlisle's shock quickly turned to anger and he gave me a withering glare. "What did you say?

I gulped and fidgeted under his angry gaze. I had crossed a line and I knew it.

"Carlisle…" Edward started, but he was immediately cut off with one glare from Carlisle.

Carlisle returned his glare to me. "Well? Would you like to repeat that, young lady?"

"N…no sir," I said quietly.

"I thought not. Let me make myself perfectly clear. I am your father and you will do as I say. If I tell you to stay, you _will_ stay. Furthermore, you well _never_ use that tone when addressing me again. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir. But please, don't make me stay here. Look, what if it's a trap? What if Alice's vision was a setup to get us to split up?" I asked. When I said it, I was just trying to get Carlisle to let me come, but once the words were out of my mouth, I realized they had merit.

"She has a point. Melinda has manipulated my visions before," Alice said.

"I agree," Esme said before looking at me with narrowed eyes. "Though I get the feeling you were trying to manipulate your father into allowing you to go and it's not appreciated."

Carlisle seemed to think about all this for a minute before looking at me sternly. "You will do what I say when I say it. Do you understand me?"

I immediately nodded my head vigorously.

"You won't question me once, got me?" he asked.

"Yes, I understand," I said quickly. I would do anything if it meant he'd let me come.

"So we're all going then?" Jasper asked.

Carlisle nodded after a moment. "Yes. I won't take the chance that it is a trap. We can't afford to be caught off guard. We all go. Go on and pack."

I all got up and headed out of the room.


	31. Chapter 31

**Bella's POV**

We made it back to Forks two days later. We would've made it there sooner, but no one wanted to test my very delicate control by flying, so we drove.

Edward, Alice, and I were sitting in the living room when Jasper came through on his way to his and Alice's bedroom with a bunch of bags in his arms. He looked at Alice in exasperation. "Alice, why? Why did you pack so much crap?"

"I need all that, Jazzy," Alice said seriously.

Edward and I both laughed. "It's not like they're heavy for you to carry them," I told him.

"It's the principle of the matter, Bella. We're going to be here for a few weeks tops. There is no need for all this. Especially since she's going to make at least three shopping trips while we're here," Jasper said.

Edward snorted. "Three. I believe you're underestimating her, brother."

"Shut up," Alice said before smacking him over the head.

"Ow!" Edward yelled.

Just then Alice sat back and went into one of her vision trances.

Jasper dropped the bags he was carrying and rushed to her side.

"Carlisle, Esme!" I called.

They both were in the room in seconds. Rosalie and Emmett also appeared from upstairs.

"Alice's having a vision," I told them.

Alice pulled out seconds later with a worried look on her face.

"What is it? What is she doing?" Jasper asked. It was obvious he was speaking of Melinda. He, as well as the rest of us, assumed Alice's vision was about her.

Alice shook her head. "No, it wasn't about Melinda. It was Charlie," Alice said.

"Charlie?" I asked nervously. What was going on with Charlie? Had something happened to him already? Alice said that it didn't involve Melinda, but that didn't mean something hadn't happened to him without her help.

"Someone must have seen us come into town. He knows we're here," Alice said.

"Well, we're not exactly the most inconspicuous bunch," Emmett commented.

"What happened in your vision, Alice?" Carlisle asked.

"He's coming here. He'll be here in one hour," Alice said.

"Why? Why would he come here?" I asked. Charlie had no way of knowing that I was here or even that I was alive. So why would he come?"

"He's angry and he's in pain. He wants to have a go at Edward. He blames him for what happened to Bella," Alice said.

"Edward, you and Jasper take Bella hunting," Carlisle said.

I opened my mouth to protest, but Carlisle immediately cut me off.

"No, Bella. Did I make myself clear about questioning me before we left?" he asked sternly.

I sighed. I don't know why I bothered in the first place. I knew I couldn't see Charlie. It would end badly for everyone, especially him. It didn't stop me from wanting to see him though. I loved Carlisle so much and I had accepted him as my father long before I learned it was a biological fact, but I loved Charlie too and I missed him.

Carlisle softened and to sit down next to me. "I'm sorry. I know you miss Charlie and you want to see him. That's one of the reasons I didn't want you to come. I knew how hard it would be for you know he so close and you still wouldn't be able to see him."

"I know I can't see him. Not just because he thinks I'm dead. If I was anywhere near him, I'm not sure I'd be able to stop myself. That's why I left in the first place. I guess knowing he's coming just made me forget that for a moment," I said.

Carlisle pulled me into his arms. "I wish it were different. I'm sorry."

"I don't. I mean, I wish I could see Charlie, but I don't regret who and what I am," I told him. I loved Charlie, but I was where I belonged. Ever since I was young, I felt something missing. I felt like an outcast in my own life. That changed when I met the Cullens. I used to think it was because of Edward that that changed, but it wasn't just him. It was because a part of me knew that I was like them and belonged with them.

Carlisle pulled away after a minute. "Go hunt with Jasper and Edward."

"I think I should stay. Let Charlie say what he wants to say," Edward said.

"No," I said immediately. I saw no reason for him to subject himself to Charlie's rage.

"I deserve it," he said remorsefully.

"Edward, you've more than paid for what happened," Carlisle said.

"Not as far as Charlie's concerned. If he needs me to answer to him for it, why not give it to him?" Edward asked.

Alice pulled into another vision. She was obviously trying to discover the outcome. She came out of it seconds later. "It's a bad idea. I see Charlie attacking Edward and our secret being revealed in the process. You need to go Edward."

"Go, Edward. I would send you all, but Melinda's more likely to discover our presence here if you all go," Carlisle said.

The three of us stood up and headed out of the room.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

**Carlisle's POV**

An hour later, I was standing in the entryway waiting for Charlie. I'd asked the others to stay upstairs while I spoke with Charlie. Talking with him was something I felt I needed to do alone. Father to father

I couldn't help but be more than a little nervous. I had no delusions of this being an easy conversation. I was going to have to pretend like I believed Bella to be dead. It felt like the most heartless thing in the world. I was a father too. More than that, I was Bella's father too. I knew what it would do to me to believe such a thing. But there was no choice. Charlie could never know the truth, not just for our safety, but for his as well.

Soon I heard the car pull up the driveway. Seconds later, there was a loud knock at the door. I took a deep breath and opened the door. Charlie was on the other side looking very angry. "Hi, Charlie."

"Where is he?" Charlie asked as he brushed passed me.

I closed the door behind him and turned to him. "Who?"

"You know who. Your bastard son!" Charlie asked angrily.

"I understand your anger, Charlie, but I'd ask you not to speak of my son in that way," I told him as civilly as possible. I did understand how upset he was, but first and foremost I was a father. I would not listen to one of my children being spoken about in such a way.

"Don't give me that, Carlisle! That little punk left my daughter in the middle of the woods. She spent month practically catatonic, and when that was over, she was still miserable. And now she's dead," Charlie said. His voice was filled with anger and pain.

I sighed. "Yes, I heard. I'm so sorry, Charlie."

"Where is he, Carlisle? He destroyed my daughter and he has to pay for that!"

"I assure you, he has. He has answered to his family," I told him.

"Not good enough! He needs to answer to me! He killed my daughter!" Charlie yelled.

"I thought Bella died in a car accident," I said. I knew he was angry, but saying Edward had killed Bella was a bit of a reach.

"Was it? Was it an accident? I don't know. I'll never know. For all I know, she did it on purpose," Charlie said.

"You think she killed herself?" I asked. My insides shivered just thinking about it. The thought of any of my children even possibly harming themselves was devastating to me, especially since Edward had nearly made it a reality a few months ago.

"I don't know. All I know is that my daughter's dead and the last few months of her life were spent in misery because of your son. What are you even doing back here? I thought you were in LA," Charlie said.

"We had a couple of things we had to take care of here," I told him truthfully.

"Is he here?" Charlie asked.

"Edward is with us, but he's not home at the moment," I told him. I decided not to lie about Edward being with us. There was the possibility of Charlie seeing him at another time and I didn't want him getting suspicious. "Even if he was though, I would not allow you to see him. You're understandably angry right now and I need to protect my son."

"Yeah, great. Protect the kid who quite possibly got my daughter killed!" Charlie said angrily.

"Charlie, I am sorry for what you're going through right now. You'll never know how much. But attacking Edward is not going to bring her back to you. It's not going to take your pain away," I said.

Charlie sighed and leaned against the table a few feet from the door. His anger dissipated quite a bit and he was left with mostly pain. "I miss her so much. To the outsider, we didn't seem so close, but I loved her."

"I know," I whispered just loud enough for him to hear.

"She was starting to do a little bit better. At least I thought she was. She was hanging out with Jacob Black and she had a little bit of what made her Bella back," Charlie said.

"I wish there was something I could do for you, Charlie. About the only thing I can do is tell you that Bella loved you very much. I know that as fact," I told him.

Charlie looked at me grateful for a minute and then stood up straight. "Tell your son he should stay away from me if he doesn't want to end up in the hospital," he said before storming out of the house.

Just then I heard footsteps barreling down the stairs. I turned to see Alice looking very concerned and the others chasing behind her.

"Carlisle, their futures just disappeared," Alice said.

"Whose?" I asked in concern.

"Jasper's, Bella's, and Edward's. They just went completely black," Alice said frantically.

My eyes widened in fear and ran out of the house in full vampire speed.


	32. Chapter 32

**Bella's POV**

I didn't hunt like Carlisle wanted. Instead, I sat on a rock in the middle of the forest. I wasn't really thirsty and I was thinking about Charlie too much to think about hunting. I just wished I could see him. I wished there was a way I could see him without seeing him or worrying about draining him dry. I just wanted to know that he was alright. It was times like this that I wished I had Alice's visions and could get a glimpse of him that way.

Jasper and Edward stood a few feet from me. I saw them both glance at each other, as if they were deciding who should talk to me first. I finally decided to put them out of their misery. "I'm not going to bite your heads off for talking to me."

If they could've blushed, I was sure they would've. "Love, you need to hunt. That's why we came out here," Edward said.

"No, we came out here so I wouldn't kill Charlie. I'm fine. I don't need to hunt," I told him.

"Carlisle would say otherwise. We don't know how often we're going to be able to hunt in the near future," Edward said.

I was about to respond when I distinct odor caught my nose. It was very familiar and very disgusting.

Jasper scrunched his nose up in disgust as well. "Oh my God. What the hell is that? It smells like... like…"

"Wet dog. It's the wolves," Edward said.

"Jake," I whispered. That was where I'd smelled it before. The last time I saw Jacob, he'd smelled like that. Only it was worse now because my vampire senses had increased since then.

We all heard a rustle in the trees before three dark skinned boys wearing nothing but shorts came towards us. I recognized two of them as Jacob and his friend Embry. The third was I believed Paul.

"Well if it isn't the leeches. You shouldn't have come back here," Paul said.

Jasper and Edward immediately got into defensive positions. "We are not on your land and we aren't hunting humans. Leave now," Edward ordered.

"That one has red eyes. That means a human drinker," Paul said with a wicked smile. He was obviously looking for a fight.

Jasper rolled his eyes. "For someone who is supposed to know all about our kind, you lack. She's a newborn. All newborns have red eyes. It's because they still have human blood in their bodies.

I frowned a little as something just occurred to me. I wasn't sure why it hadn't occurred to me earlier, but it didn't. It was seeming like human blood would always flow through me. After all, I still had a blush and I ate human food. Did that mean my eyes would always be red? I would have to ask Carlisle about it later.

"That's Bella Swan. She's presumed dead. It was you people, wasn't it? You made her one of you and faked her death," Embry said angrily.

"No," I said as I stood up. "My family was long gone when I started to change. I was not bitten by them or anyone else."

"Bella," Jasper said nervously. He apparently didn't think it was a good idea for them to know my origin.

"Lies! You can't become a leech without being bitten!" Paul said hotly.

"You don't believe me. Fine, ask Jake. I'm surprised he didn't tell you already," I said. I was sure he would've told his pack brothers what happened. Or what he knew about it anyway.

"I didn't see the point. You were gone and you said you weren't coming back," Jacob said.

"Wait, are you saying this is true?" Embry asked in disbelief.

"It's true," Jacob said before moving to come over to me.

Jasper snarled and he and Edward got in between us.

"Move!" Jacob growled.

"It's okay. He's not going to hurt me," I told them.

"Bella, they are our natural enemies. It's in their nature to hurt us," Jasper told me.

"He's got a point," Paul said.

"He's not going to hurt me. If he were, he would've done it when I went to him months ago. Now please move," I told him.

Edward and Jasper still looked hesitant to move.

"Damn it, get the hell out of the way!" I said angrily.

Finally both moved. Neither seemed keen on incurring my wrath.

Jacob smirked at them and walked over to me.

"Hey, Jake," I said.

"Well, I guess you found them. I'm assuming they're responsible for your 'death'," Jacob said.

I sighed. "It was better this way. If we didn't do it, Charlie would just keep hoping for something that would never happen. It wouldn't have been fair."

"And this is?" he asked.

Edward growled. "You have no right to lecture her, dog!"

"What would you have had me do, Jacob? I couldn't stay here. I thought we established that before I left," I said. We'd both fought about it before we left, but in the end, we agreed that it was the best thing for me to do.

"Right. So what are you doing here? You said you weren't going to come back."

"We didn't intend to. There's just something we have to handle and then we'll be leaving again," I told him.

"What do you have to handle?" Jacob asked.

"It's none of your business," Edward snarled.

"Nobody was talking to you, leech!" Jacob bit back.

"Hey! I don't know if you noticed, but I'm a leech now too," I told him irritably. Jacob was a good friend to me, but I wouldn't listen to him insult my family.

"You'll never be one of them. You shouldn't even be with them. They left you," Jacob said.

I heard as my brother and mate growled, but I paid them no mind as I glared at my friend. "That really is none of your business."

Just then, Carlisle flashed to us. "What's going on here? Are you three all right?"

"We've fine," I told him.

"Carlisle, why am I getting fear off you? We're perfectly alright," Jasper said.

"Alice said your futures disappeared," Carlisle told him.

"What?" I asked in concern. That had never happened before. Even with my shield up, the future only ever blurred. It never disappeared completely.

Edward frowned at the wolves. "It has to be them."

"Can you hear them?" I asked him.

Edward nodded. "Yeah."

"Hold on, what do you mean hear us?" Jacob asked.

"Well, for instance, your thoughts regarding my mate are more than a bit irritating," Edward said while glaring.

"Whoa, he can hear our thoughts?" Embry asked with in shock and a bit of horror.

"So what is going on here?" Carlisle asked.

"They accosted us," Jasper said.

"If we'd accosted you, you'd know it," Paul said in a threatening tone.

"Well, I wouldn't have said it if I didn't know it," Jasper retorted.

Edward and I both laughed.

Paul growled and went to approach Jasper.

Carlisle immediately got in between the two. "I respectfully request that you back away. We have not broken the treaty. You have no reason to attack us."

"Your bloodsuckers! That's enough for me," Paul said.

"Paul, he's right, we can't attack. We should get back to Sam and tell him what's going on," Embry said before looking at Carlisle. "He'll want a meeting."

Carlisle nodded. "Of course."

"Jake, you coming?" Embry asked.

Jacob looked at me once more and then reluctantly left with his friends.

Carlisle turned to us. "What happened?"

"Nothing really. They thought we'd broken the treaty because I'm a vampire and my eyes are red," I told him.

"Idiots. You would think they'd know more about vampires than they actually do. Haven't they ever heard the phrase 'know thy enemy'?" Jasper asked.

"Alright, let's go home. We can discuss what happens next with the wolves there. I'm sure everyone is worried for you three, especially Alice," Carlisle said.

"Bella hasn't hunted yet. None of us have," Jasper said.

I glared daggers at my brother.

"Don't give me that look. You haven't," Jasper said with no regret.

"Alright, Jasper's right. You need to hunt, Bella. You haven't since we left New York," Carlisle said.

I opened my mouth to interrupt, but one look from Carlisle and I stopped. "Fine, but will you at least tell me if Charlie's okay?"

"He's… coping. We'll talk about it later. Now go hunt, all of you. There's no point in waiting while we're already out there.


	33. Chapter 33

**Carlisle's POV**

After we all hunted, the four of us made it back to the house. The others were waiting for us when we got home.

Alice practically bombarded Jasper the moment he walked in. "Oh, Jazzy, I was so scared!"

Jasper held her tightly in his arms. "I'm fine, Darlin'. There's no need to be afraid.

Esme, meanwhile went to Bella and Edward and took them both into her arms. She too looked very worried.

"We're fine, Mom," Edward assured his mother. It wasn't often he referred to us as 'mom' and 'dad'. When he did, it was usually when we were upset and in need of reassurance, like now.

Esme finally pulled away. "What happened out there? Alice said your futures disappeared."

Alice pulled out of Jasper's embrace, but she was still visibly upset. "I was so scared, Jazzy. I thought _she_ got to you guys."

"No, we're fine. There was no sign of Melinda in those woods," Jasper assured her.

"Then what happened? Nothing's ever done anything like that to my visions before," Alice said.

"It was the wolves. Remember we told you about the wolf shape shifters from the reservation, and how Bella told us about her friend Jacob being one of them? Well, we think their presence affects your visions," I explained.

"They were in the woods?" Esme asked.

I nodded. They approached these three while they were hunting."

"Dogs," Rosalie hissed lowly.

"We can expect them to contact us shortly. Their Alpha is going to want a meeting," I said.

"Sam Uley, he's the Alpha," Bella piped up.

"Love, exactly how much time did you spend around the wolves?" Edward asked with some concern and a touch of jealously.

Bella rolled her eyes. "I wasn't exactly around the pack often. It was mostly just Jacob."

That didn't seem to appease Edward, as he grumbled in response. "The wolves are dangerous. They could've killed you."

Bella narrowed her eyes at him. "Do you really want to get into a conversation about who I hung around after you left me?"

Edward winced at the question. It obviously had its desired effect. "Uh, no, that's okay."

Emmett snickered. "Dude, you are so whipped."

Edward just glared at him in response.

"So you guys are alright, correct? The wolves didn't try to hurt you or anything?" Esme said, still quite concerned for our children.

"Not unless annoyance is considered a form of harm," Jasper retorted.

"If so, we were definitely harmed," Edward added.

I fixed them both with a look, silently telling them both to knock it off before turning to my wife. "They're all fine, Darling. The wolves were not happy by our return, but I'm sure we can work it out."

"No, we should stay away from them. I can't see anything while they're around," Alice said sounding distressed.

I couldn't really blame my daughter. The unknown was scary to anyone, but Alice was used to being able to anticipate things. It was probably quite unsettling to have her visions cut off in such a way, especially with Melinda out there. "Unfortunately, we have no choice, Alice. With a new wolf pack, we have to ensure the treaty stays intact. The last thing we need is a war right now. We have enough problems as it is.

"I don't see what the big deal is. We don't hurt anyone and we don't go on their land. That should be their only issues," Bella said.

"They're our enemies, Bella. It's in their nature to hate us, to want to fight us. But as long as Sam Uley honors the treaty, I don't see there being a real problem. In the meantime, I think we all need to sit down and talk about the Melinda situation. Let us go into the dining room," I said.

My wife and children followed me into the dining room and we all sat down. I sat at the head of the table and the others sat around me. Once we were all settled I began to speak. "Alright, now we all know the Melinda situation is unlike any other situation we've dealt with before.

They all nodded and then Edward spoke. "Yeah, I think last time and even what she managed to do so far this time is proof of that. She has the ability to trick us in the worst possible ways.

Jasper and Bella both growled, obviously both thinking about how they were subjected to Melinda's illusions.

"For that reason, we need to be extra cautious. I won't keep everyone cooped up like we were in New York. That was a mistake," I said. That was obvious with what happened with Bella. She had been vulnerable to Melinda's advances because she hadn't hunted in so long. I couldn't allow that to happen again. "However, no one goes anywhere alone. We travel in groups of three at all times."

"_All _of us?" Emmett asked with a smirk. He was obviously wondering if I included myself in that statement.

"Yes, all of us, Emmett," I told him. I didn't need to be caught off guard either. While going in groups wouldn't protect us completely, it would be safer. Melinda was less likely to be able to trick us if we were together. "Also, we should limit our trips out of the house to hunting. We don't want to alert Melinda to our presence here sooner than necessary."

"I don't understand. Why don't just find her and stop her? Unless, you don't intend to do that," Bella said with a bit of irritation in her voice.

I narrowed my eyes at my newborn daughter. "Bella, I realize that this is difficult for you, but I am going to warn you again about speaking respectfully to me. My patience is growing thin!"

"Sorry," Bella mumbled quietly.

"To answer your question, yes, I do intent to kill Melinda. I wish there was a way, but their clearly isn't. It will be done and I will be the one to do it. Is that understood?" I asked while looking right at Jasper. I knew he probably wanted to be the one to end Melinda, and rightfully so, but I would not put my son through the guilt of killing his sister's natural mother. Even if Bella never held it against him, he would hold it against himself. I wouldn't allow that.

"Yes, sir," Jasper said, realizing that I was directing the question towards him.'

"Now the reason we're not going to go after her now is because we need a plan. This is not like James. Melinda has much more at her disposal. We must be one hundred percent prepared before we go after her. Now, Alice, would you mind looking for her again."

Alice nodded and then focused her eyes to go into a vision. She came out second later looking very distressed. "No, it's happening again! I can't see anything!

"One of the wolves is here. That Jacob Black boy. His thoughts are loud," Edward grumbled.

Rosalie growled. "Doesn't that stupid rule about land work both ways! They shouldn't be able to come onto our property either!

"He's outside by the curb. He wants Bella to come talk to him alone," Edward growled, making his feelings very clear on the matter.

"Like that's going to happen," Jasper said.

Bella rolled her eyes. "Jake is not going to hurt me. He's my friend."

"Not anymore he's not," Jasper said.

"Jasper," I warned.

"Look, I'm just telling her how it is. Bella, they are our enemies. It's an instinct. He won't be able to help but dislike you," Jasper said as gently as possible.

"Jake won't hurt me," Bella repeated.

"Be that as it may, you're not meeting with him alone," I said firmly. I didn't know this Jacob Black from Adam. All I did know was that he was our natural enemy and I would not allow him alone with my daughter.

"Fine, let Alice come with me," Bella said.

"Me? Why me?" Alice asked in surprise.

"Yeah, why her?" Jasper asked, clearly unhappy with the idea of his mate meeting with wolves without him.

"Why either of you actually?" Edward asked.

"Because you're the least likely to growl like a macho idiot," she said while switching a glare between Jasper and Edward.

"I don't know," I said hesitantly. I didn't love the idea of any of my children going out there without me.

"Come on, Carlisle, please. Jake won't feel so threatened if just Alice comes with me," Bella said.

"Oh, right, because I girl can't look threatening. Typical male," Rosalie grumbled.

"Alright, but I will be in the doorway."

"Carlisle!" both Jasper and Edward protested enough.

I placed my hand up to stop them. "Boys, it will be fine. I will be in the doorway listening the entire time. Now you don't have to like it, but this is how it is going to go.

Bella and Alice both nodded and stood up and headed for the door. I stood in the doorway as they both made their way over to the Black boy. Do to my vampire hearing, I heard what they were saying as if they were standing right next to me.

"I told your bloodsucker I wanted to see you alone," the Black boy said irritably.

"Too bad. Our father wouldn't allow any of us to come talk to you alone," Alice said.

"That blond bloodsucker is _not_ Bella's father!" Jacob exclaimed.

"Yes, he is, Jake," Bella said, causing me to smile.

My daughter's words seemed to enrage the Black boy. "So you've got a new family now? Is that it? You're just going to forget about Charlie?"

I watched as Bella flinched slightly and I had to resist the urge to go down there and put a stop to this.

"Back off, dog! Can't you see this hard for her? Do you know how hard it was for her not to stay when Charlie came to our house earlier? How hard it was for her to leave him in the first place? This is killing her, but she's doing what she has to to make sure her father doesn't end up dead!" Alice yelled at him.

I smiled proudly at my pixie daughter. I always loved it when my children stood up for each other.

"Bella, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause you anymore pain," Jacob said. The remorse in his voice was sincere.

"It's okay. What did you need, Jake?" Bella asked.

"Sam wants a meeting with your… family." He said the word family with nothing but disdain. "We wanna meet at the treaty line at midnight."

Bella and Alice both turned back to me and I nodded my approval.

"We'll be there," Bella said.

"Good. See you then," Jacob said before taking off into the trees.

Bella and Alice came back and we all went inside.


	34. Chapter 34

**Carlisle's POV**

A few hours later, we were all ready to leave for our meeting with the wolves. "Alight, listen up, especially you three," I said as I motioned between Jasper, Alice, and Bella. They were the only ones not around when we dealt with the wolves the first time. "You will all stay behind me at all times during our dealing with the wolves and you will make your best efforts not to antagonize them. These wolves are very young and they are capable of anything."

"We can handle ourselves, Carlisle. You let Bella and Alice go see one of them alone," Jasper said a bit bitterly. He was obviously a bit upset that Alice had been to see Jacob Black without him there to protect her.

I narrowed my eyes at Jasper warningly. I knew that would be enough for him. "The key word in that sentence is 'one', son. We are talking about an entire pack of who knows how many. I will not risk any of you getting hurt."

"Come on, Carlisle, we can take a bunch of pups," Emmett said eagerly.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Don't even think about it, Emmett. This is not going to turn into a fight. We are going simply to make sure the treaty remains intact while we are here."

"Your father's right. There will be no fighting," Esme said firmly.

"What if they start it?" Rosalie asked.

"We will cross that bridge when we come to it, but we will do everything in our power to avoid a fight, alright?" Esme asked.

They all nodded, though some of them somewhat reluctantly.

"Alright, let's go," I said before leading the way out of the house.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

We made it to the treaty line mere minutes later, as we ran at vampire speed. Just after we got there, several giant wolves came out of the woods. Only one came out in human form. I assumed it was the leader, Sam Uley.

"I am Sam," the man said, confirming my suspicions.

"Carlisle," I told him. "And this is my family. My wife Esme and our children."

'Yeah, I know who you are. Why are you here? We assumed you were gone. Now you come back with a vampire Bella Swan who happens to have bright red eyes," Sam said.

"We explained that," Jasper said with an edge to his voice.

"Bella is a newborn. Newborn vampires have red eyes because human blood still resides inside of them. She has never tasted human blood," I explained.

One of the wolves growled and Edward scowled, obviously having read this thoughts.

"What is it, son?" I asked.

"One of them, Paul, I believe, doesn't believe us," Edward said before glaring at the white and grey wolf. "Maybe you should learn a bit more about us before you go accusing us of lying."

The wolf growled loudly and got ready to attack, causing me to step between him and Edward.

"Paul, enough!" Sam chastised.

The wolf stepped back, but continued to bare his teeth to my son.

"Jacob told us that Bella began turning into a vampire after you were all gone and that she wasn't bitten. Perhaps you could explain that," Sam said.

"No," I said simply. I would not explain that for the same reason I had been reluctant to allow the Volturi to find out, even though it turned out Aro already knew. Bella was an anomaly. She was something that had never existed before. I would not take the chance of the wolves targeting her out of fear of the unknown.

"Excuse me?" Sam asked as though he didn't hear me.

"I said no. I will not explain Bella's existence to you. It is quite frankly none of your business," I said politely, but firmly.

"The hell it isn't!" Sam yelled while many of the other vampires growled along with him. "It is our job to protect the town."

Bella growled next to Edward.

I placed my hand up to stop her from speaking. "Bella is no threat to the town. She has never attacked a human. She has decent control and that control grows every day."

"How are we to know that?" Sam asked.

I was about to answer when I hear two loud snarls. One from Edward and the other from another of the wolves. Surprisingly they weren't growling at each other though. They were growling at the wolf known as Paul.

"He wants to kill Bella!" Edward said angrily.

This time I growled, along with the rest of my family. I rarely ever growled, but I would not stand for my children being threatened. "Sam, I suggest you keep your pack under control. We came here to honor the treaty, but I will not tolerate threats against one of my children."

Sam glared over at Paul, silently telling him to back off. Then he turned back to me. "I am all for respecting the treaty, but I need to be sure that our people and the people of Forks will be protected."

"They are in no danger from us. As I've told you, Bella has never bitten anyone, nor does she have any intention of it," I told them.

"I'd like to hear that from her," Sam said.

I contemplated for a minute before beckoning Bella forward.

"Carlisle!" Edward protested.

"Son, are you under the impression that I would allow anything to happen to Bella?" I asked him calmly.

"Of course not," Edward said.

"Then please trust me. Bella," I beckoned again. She was by my side in seconds and I placed a protective arm around her.

"Hi, Sam," Bella greeted.

"Hello, Bella. It's good to see you, though I wish it were under better circumstances," Sam said.

"How good the circumstances are is a matter of opinion," Bella said through gritted teeth.

"Fair enough. I need to know. Is he right? Have you abstained from human blood?" Sam asked.

"I've never tasted human blood. I can't say that I've never been tempted. All vampires are tempted at one point or another, but I never have and I hope I never will," Bella said.

"You hope?" Sam asked unhappily.

"Like I said, all vampires are tempted. Human blood is like a drug for vampires and it's like we're all former addicts. I can't say for sure that I won't bite a human, but I can say that I do my best every single day," Bella said.

I decided to intervene at this point. I didn't like the way the wolves were all looking at Bella. "And that's why your ancestors proposed the treaty. In case the worst happened. Now we will do our best to make sure the worst doesn't happen and you in turn won't attack us unless it does."

"If it does happen…"

"We are clear on the consequences," I interrupted Sam.

Sam nodded.

"There is something else you need to be aware of," I told him. I felt I needed to warn them about Melina. They needed to be aware of the danger to the town of Forks and possibly the reservation. "There is a reason we've returned to Forks. We are tracking another of our kind. This one does not share our diet and is a very significant danger to the town. We have reason to believe that she's already here?"

"Are you talking about the redhead?" Sam asked.

"The redhead? What read head," I asked concerned. That certainly didn't describe Melinda, unless she had used her gift to alter her appearance.

"Victoria," Edward growled.

"She circled around for a while, but finally managed to get her a few weeks ago. She was approaching the Swan residence. We assume she decided to go after Charlie when she couldn't get to Bella," Sam said.

Bella's eyes widened in horror when she heard this.

I tightened my grip around my daughter. "Sweetheart, it's alright. Charlie is fine. It was at the house earlier, remember?"

Bella nodded her head, but she still seemed quite upset, probably because Victoria was able to get so close.

"We were watching the house and managed to stop her just in the nick of time," Sam said.

"I'm glad to hear it, however, I wasn't speaking about her. There is another one," I told him.

Sam shook his head. "No, you were the first scent of vampires we've picked up since we stopped the redhead."

"Yes, well, unfortunately, your extra senses may not work properly with this specific creature. She has the ability to appear as anything she wishes. She would be able to mask herself as human if she wanted. You wouldn't even know the difference if she was standing right in front of you," I explained.

"It's possible for a vampire to do that?" Sam asked.

"It's possible for this vampire to do that. She plays mind games and she enjoys it. She's made a sport out of destroying lives. Believe me, I know from personal experience," Jasper said.

A very worried look crossed Sam's face. "A being like this can't be allowed to live."

"I agree. That is why we are here. To stop her once and for all. I simply wanted to warn you in case she does cross your land. She is dangerous and you should take this threat very seriously," I warned.

Sam nodded. "I appreciate that. We will keep our guard up. And the treaty can remain intact as well. Just make sure that you keep your… family under control," he said while eying Bella.

"I will. Thank you," I said politely before leading my family away.


End file.
